


Frosted Petals

by Prettysetterss (crescentStarlight)



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Disney fairies au, Fairies, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-27
Updated: 2017-08-30
Packaged: 2018-05-09 19:37:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 31,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5552642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crescentStarlight/pseuds/Prettysetterss
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oikawa is a Garden fairy who lives his life in the sunshine surrounded by flowers. Winter is a foreign concept for him. But one mishap convinces him that a little cold and snow never hurt anyone if there's a cute Winter fairy involved.</p><p>(Updates every Wednesday!)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Gloxinia

**Author's Note:**

> _If you had wings to lift you, and the Second Star your guide,_  
>  _you'd find a place where all the seasons flourish side by side._  
>  _Yet past the Summer Meadow and beyond the Autumn Wood,_  
>  _lies an icy land of secrets, a world misunderstood._  
>  _But if your mind is open and your heart just has to know,_  
>  _your wings can take you farther than you ever thought you'd go._  
>  -Tinkerbell and the Secret of the Wings

Oikawa Tooru has a very strict morning routine. A cup of mint tea while he soaks in a bath with rose essential oils? Check. Drying off with his favorite towel that was soft like bunny fur? Check. Spending thirty minutes picking any of his highly stylish flower petal outfits? Check. Combing his hair and pinning his favorite magnolia hair clip?

 

...When Oikawa’s morning routine gets messed up, all of Pixie Hollow finds out. Needless to say, Oikawa’s neighbors were awakened this morning by his scream.

 

* * *

 

“I swear, Makki, I put it on my windowsill last night, and it wasn’t there this morning! I’ve searched _everywhere_ for it!”

 

Oikawa has been grumbling all morning as he and Hanamaki work in Sunflower Meadow, inspecting flowers and making sure the seeds will be ready for harvest in the following month.

 

“Have you tried asking around? Also, you’re holding that flower petal too tightly.” Makki smirks lightly at him as he flies over to smooth out the petal. Oikawa lets go of the flower and whispers a quiet apology to it, turning the same shade as his rose petal tunic. _This wouldn’t be happening if my magnolia clip wasn’t missing!_

 

It wasn’t like this clip could be replaced. He’d gotten it at the annual Garden Fairy banquet a few years ago as recognition for being one of the best Garden talents in the history of Pixie Hollow. That magnolia clip was enchanted with powerful magic so that it would never wilt. It had become a defining feature of who he was. _And now it’s gone,_ he thought miserably as he slowly flew off for their lunch break.

 

As he slowly sipped his squash soup, he smelled something familiar.

 

_Magnolia._

 

He stood up quickly, knocking over his chair and nearly his soup in the process. Makki looks up at him, confused, as Oikawa storms off in the direction of the scent. He finds himself fighting his way through the crowd to the Fast-Flying talent table.

 

And then he sees it. His beautiful magnolia hair clip, sitting on the head of the newest, dark haired Fast Flying fairy.

 

“You!” he shouts, pointing at smaller fairy as he stomps over to the table. The fairy startles, blue eyes widening as he suddenly zooms off, wings a blur of gossamer.

 

_Damn Fast Flying talents,_ Oikawa thinks as he flies off in pursuit of the new fairy. He chases him back past Sunflower Meadow and through the Animal Talent training grounds, where many bunnies and ferrets are knocked over by the chase. Oikawa makes a mental note to go back and apologize to the frazzled Animal talents that he left in his wake. Eventually Oikawa corners him in Tinkers’ Nook. When the Fast Flying talent stops abruptly, Oikawa crashes into him. Grabbing the younger fairy’s arm, Oikawa triumphantly goes to grab his clip…

 

...which is not on the fairy’s head. Oikawa can feel a headache coming on.

 

“Where is it? Where’s my hair clip?”

 

The younger fairy stares up at him, silent and shaking. “I-I don’t know! I think it f-fell off!”

 

Oikawa growls as he pushes the fairy to the ground and flies off, retracing their chase.

 

_And now I have to miss lunch for this._

 

* * *

 

When Oikawa finds himself back at the Animal Talent training grounds, he finds one of his friends comforting a trembling bunny.

 

“Kuroo!” The black haired Animal Talent looks up at him, still petting the bunny. Oikawa lands next to him.

 

“Sorry about all the mess,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. Kuroo fixes him with a glare that softens in a few seconds.

 

“Just try to keep your wild chases away from the ferrets next time. Especially when we’re trying to keep them calm and train them for the Crossing and you're not listening.”

 

Oikawa is barely paying attention to Kuroo’s words, looking around and trying to find the scent of magnolia. Kuroo pokes him in the side and Oikawa yelps as he smirks, “You looking for something else to chase? The birds could use a workout.”

 

Oikawa sighs. “No, I’m looking for my magnolia hair clip. That fairy I was chasing had it, but apparently he lost it somewhere between the dining hall and Tinkers’ Nook.”

Kuroo whistles lowly. “So that’s why all the Garden talents have been on edge.”

 

Oikawa punches him in the shoulder. “Shut up and help me look for it.”

 

Kuroo gives the bunny one last pat on the nose as it nuzzles his hand and hops away. They split up, with Kuroo talking the northern half with the animal houses and Oikawa searching the southern half with the supplies.

 

When Oikawa smells magnolia again, he sees some Animal talents heading out with some of the bunnies and ferrets in an animal transport basket. He’s about to go up to them, but he sees Kyoutani leading the pack. The rough looking Animal talent never got along with Oikawa and was sure to cause a scene if he tried to talk to him.

 

_If I call them now, they'll get distracted and then they'll be even angrier at me._

 

So as the Animal talents rolled out with their animals, Oikawa flew behind them, hiding behind various leafy objects as he went. The magnolia scent was definitely going with them and Oikawa’s wings fluttered nervously.

 

The air seemed to get a little colder around him as he kept flying. He thought it was just the Garden fairies' natural sensitivity to temperature. But when the Animal talents reached their destination, Oikawa froze in realization.

 

They were at the border to the Winter Woods.

 

There was a clear, vertical divide between where the warmth stopped and the snow began. Oikawa shivered, and not just from the temperature. Animal fairies were one of the only talent guilds that had any business going near the Winter Woods, helping the various animals of Pixie Hollow make the transition between warmth and winter. Garden fairies stayed as far away as they could from the Winter Woods- the cold was the antithesis to their flowers and plants.

 

He watched from behind a tree as, one by one, the Animal talents helped the animals out of the cart and to the Crossing. As the bunnies and ferrets jumped through the visible divide between warm and cold, he saw their coats turn from brown to white. Even Oikawa could see the beauty in that. Then he saw something more amazing.

 

A Winter fairy.

 

Oikawa’s jaw dropped at the handsome fairy with spiky brown hair and broad wings. He was wearing a sleeveless top and long pants made of light blue leaves. His neck was lined with a scarf of white fur.

 

He was so distracted by the Winter fairy what he almost missed it- his magnolia hair clip! It was nestled in the fur of one of the bunnies, and the Animal talents hadn't noticed it. This bunny happened to be the last, and the most excitable. The Garden fairy watched in horror as the bunny bounded off into the Winter Woods and into the arms of the waiting Winter fairy. Oikawa was torn between sighing at the fairy's handsome laugh as he rubbed the bunny's head and crying because his beautiful magnolia hair clip was _in the Winter Woods._

 

The Animal fairies waved goodbye and headed back towards their training camp. The Winter fairy waved back as he kept petting the excitable bunny. Those long fingers suddenly touched the flower. His features scrunched up into confusion as he pulled out the clip and inspected it. The Winter fairy set down the bunny and walked up to the border and gently tossed the clip back into Warm fairy territory.

 

He flew back into the Winter Woods, leading the animals with him. Once the Winter fairy was out of sight, Oikawa fluttered over to where his clip lay. It was chilled, but the magic in it didn’t seem to be damaged. The Garden fairy held the flower to his chest, where his heart was still was still fluttering as quickly as a Fast Flying fairy’s wings. He stared off in the direction where the Winter fairy flew off.

 

* * *

 

“Oh Oikawa, you found your clip!”

 

“Kuroo, when is the next delivery of animals to the Winter Woods?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is [gloxinia](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/9f/d5/14/9fd5140f2325f70bd52b570cfaf0092c.jpg), for love at first sight.


	2. Hydrangea

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the comments and support I've gotten for this fic! I think I accidentally didn't mark this as a multichapter work, but here it is! This fic was fully intended to be a multichapter work and I'm so excited to write this! 
> 
> P.S. Pay attention to the chapter titles ;)

“I had no idea you had an interest in being an honorary Animal talent.”

Oikawa refrains from glaring at Sugawara, the Water talent he usually works with. He needs to think positive thoughts so the flowers he’s planting will grow healthily and beautifully. It’s usual afternoon work, taking advantage of the sun high in the sky: Oikawa plants the seed, Suga waters, Oikawa sprinkles some pixie dust to get the seed sprouted, they move onto the next seed.

“It was just to apologize for causing a mess before their lunch,” Oikawa says flippantly. Apparently his absence for the beginning of their afternoon work was noted by all the Garden talents, but Suga was the first to ask about it. By the time he finally got back to where the Garden and Water talents were scheduled to work, everyone else was well into their tasks.

“Is it really? I didn’t know an apology took so long, especially for you.” Suga gives him a sly grin and flutters in front of him, blocking his path.

“I was looking for my hair clip there too,” he replies, touching the flower that was rightfully back on his head.

Suga raises an eyebrow at him and then proceeds to stare him down. _Fuck. He knows I’m not telling him everything._ Oikawa is a great liar, except when it comes to Suga. Absolutely no one can hide anything from Sugawara Koushi. He also knows from experience that Suga will absolutely not let it go. He looks over to where Hanamaki is working with Yahaba, a soft spoken Water talent. As much as he loves Suga, sometimes he wishes his partner from the Water guild wouldn’t be such a good lie detector.

He sighs, “I’ll tell you after we finish working alright? We’re already behind everyone else.”

Suga raises an eyebrow and then holds his hand out. “Pixie promise?”

Oikawa grumbles as he sprinkles a pinch of pixie dust into his outstretched palm. “Pixie promise.”

Suga grins and sprinkles some of his own pixie dust onto Oikawa’s hand to complete the promise. He flies up and summons his mini-raincloud again. The Garden talent picks up the next seed and wonders how he’s going to explain just how beautiful that Winter fairy was.  

 

* * *

 

When they’re back at his house and Oikawa has set out some fresh chamomile tea (herbs fresh from his garden) for the two of them and he still doesn’t know how to explain the situation. He must spend a little too much time adding sugar cubes to his tea, because Suga gently puts his hand on top of Oikawa’s.

“You know you can tell me anything, right?” Suga’s voice sounds like he melted honey on his words.

Oikawa sighs and nods. After taking a few sips of his tea, he begins telling Suga all about his day’s misadventures, about going to the Border and the Winter Animal talent he saw there.

“His arms were so beautiful, Suga, you had to see them. And that laugh! It was so cute! I just have to see him again, Suga. So I’m going with Kuroo a few days from now to help with their animal delivery.”

Oikawa sends him one of his brightest smiles, but Suga just looks perplexed. “And does Kuroo know that this is why you’re ‘helping’ him?”

The Garden talent wilts a little. “No…”

“Oikawa, he’s a _Winter_ fairy. You’re a _Warm_ fairy, a Garden talent at that. It’s too dangerous for you to interact.”

“I know that!” Oikawa realizes he spoke a little too loudly and lowers his eyes and voice. “But I just have this feeling, Suga. I need to see him.”

When he looks up at Suga, he’s looking at him with the most disappointed expression. “What if you get hurt? You don’t know anything about Winter fairies.”

Oikawa stays silent. Suga stands up and rests a hand on his shoulder. “I’m not trying to make you feel bad, Tooru. I just don’t want you hurt.”

As Suga is about to leave, Oikawa says, almost inaudibly, “Please don’t tell anyone about this.”

Suga nods, but Oikawa grabs his arm and holds out his own palm. “Pixie promise?”

The Water talent hesitates before sprinkling a pinch of pixie dust in his palm. “Pixie promise. Only so you don’t get in trouble.”

Oikawa gives some of his own pixie dust back to seal the promise. Just before Suga starts flying off, he turns and gives Oikawa a hug before leaving Oikawa with silence.

 

* * *

 

The sun is rising the day of the next Crossing, and Oikawa is soaking in a bath scented in ginger essential oils. He absentmindedly swirls his fingers in the water, lost in thought.

_What if Kuroo finds out why I’m going to the Crossing? He might react like Suga, and then he won’t tell me when the next animal deliveries are._

_And then I might not see the Winter fairy again._

Oikawa’s wings tremble at that thought. For all that he has told Suga about the Winter fairy’s good looks or charming laugh, Oikawa feels something within him pulling him to the Winter fairy.

_And no one’s going to stop me from figuring out just what it is._

 

* * *

 

Oikawa finds Kuroo just as the Animal talents are finishing their lunch and the Garden talents are just starting theirs.

“Sorry Kuroo, I can’t make it to the Crossing today. We have a pretty big workload after lunch and I can’t skip today.”

Oikawa is making his signature playful apologetic face, tongue sticking out and rubbing the back of his head. Kuroo waves him off, saying, “It’s all cool, I get it. The next delivery is two days from now if you want to join us then.”

Oikawa nods, “Yeah, that’d be great!”

As Kuroo puts away his dishes, he scratches his head thoughtfully. “Y’know, I never thought Oikawa I’m-terrified-of-field-mice Tooru would be joining some Animal talents for work.”

The Garden talent startles a bit. “Haha, yeah. Just trying to expand my horizons.”

When Oikawa shifts his gaze to avoid looking at Kuroo for longer than necessary, he spots Suga looking around the dining hall. _No doubt for me, to keep me from going to the Crossing._

“Okay Kuroo it’s been nice talking to you good luck with the Crossing bye!” He rambles as he tries to sneakily escape the dining hall. Kuroo waves at him, bemused. Oikawa quickly spots Hanamaki, grabs him by the shoulders and turns him around to shield himself from Suga’s gaze. As he folds his wings behind his back, he starts walking backwards towards the entrance to the dining hall, pulling Hanamaki with him.

“Makki-chan, be a dear and cover for me please?” Oikawa asks in his best pretty-please-with-a-cherry-on-top-go-along-with-this voice. Makki looks at him, confused and a little exasperated, but he’s learned from all his time spent with Oikawa that it’s best to just roll with it.

“Fine,” he says, sighing.

“Yay! And remember, if anyone, but especially Suga, asks where I am, you never saw me.”

 

* * *

 

Oikawa was no Fast Flying fairy, but he was definitely faster than some Animal talents that were slowed down by a bunch of rowdy animals. Taking a shortcut over the tops of the red and yellow leaved trees, the Garden talent manages to make it to the Border well ahead of the Animal fairies, even after having to fly back to his home to pick the biggest and most beautiful flower from his garden.

_Hydrangea, for gratitude. And now the hard part._

He steels himself as he lands at the end of the bridge to the Winter Woods. He can already feel himself getting goosebumps and shaking, from both the cold and the anticipation. Oikawa slowly creeps up to the divide, knees trembling with every step. Halfway to where the snow starts, the Garden talent stops.

_It’s too cold. What if I freeze to death because a snowflake touched me?_

Oikawa is snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of a twig cracking from the Winter side. He then does what any reasonable fairy would do: he chucks the flowers over into the snow and then flies off to hide behind the closest shrub.

Once he is safely away from the deadly snowflakes, Oikawa groans with his face in his hands. The sound of voices from the snow makes him look up again. This time, there are two Winter fairies. One has messy black hair and a sleepy looking expression on his face. Flying next to him is the Handsome Fairy again, and Oikawa can feel his heart beating fast again.They’re both dressed similarly, this time in navy blue shirts and pants. Handsome Fairy is still wearing that white fur scarf, though.

_They must both be Animal talents._

“...and then Kindaichi knocked over Kunimi’s snowflake basket, and you should have seen the way he was flailing, trying to pick it all up for him!”

The sleepy-eyed fairy laughs at the story, but all Oikawa can pay attention to is the sound of Handsome Fairy’s voice, sweeter than honeycakes on a summer day.

...He has it bad.

“Iwaizumi, maybe we should help out the newest member of our talent group,” Sleepy-Eyed Fairy chuckles.

 _Iwaizumi,_ Oikawa mouths, feeling the way the name fits in his mouth.

“Nah, I’m sure he’ll be fine, Matsu-” Iwaizumi stops in the middle of his sentence when he catches sight of the blue-purple bundles on the white snow.

“Again? It doesn’t seem like this came from around here,” Iwaizumi groans confusedly.

“Maybe a Warm fairy is trying to send you a message,” Matsu comments. Oikawa decides to call him Mattsun until he finds out his actual name.

“What Warm fairy would even want to communicate with a _flower_ ? The Warm Animal talents are the only ones that need to talk to us, and they can just send us a leaf message or, I don’t know, just _tell us when they see us_?”

Mattsun walks up to the hydrangeas cautiously. “You think it’s safe to touch them?”

Iwaizumi shrugs, “I didn’t die touching that one flower from a few days ago.”

Mattsun gingerly picks up the flowers and, upon confirming that they weren’t going to melt off his fingers, holds them out to Iwaizumi. Something in Iwaizumi’s eyes softens at the flowers and he says, “Y’know, they’re kinda pretty.”

Oikawa can feel his cheeks go red. All three fairies startle when they hear the Animal Talents rolling up with their meerkats. The two Winter fairies look frazzled, trying to figure out what to do with the flowers, and in a stroke of genius to rival Oikawa’s, Mattsun shoves the stems of the flowers into the neck of Iwaizumi’s shirt so the clusters of petals are hidden by his head. Iwaizumi only has time to fix Mattsun with a glare before the Animal talents come into view.

The Garden talent giggles as he watches the animals cross again. Iwaizumi seems to forget the flowers stuck behind him when the first meerkat nudges his hands. Oikawa sighs at the way Iwaizumi automatically smiles at the animals. The Animal talents quickly help the animals cross and wave as they go back. Once the Warm fairies are out of sight, the two Winter fairies visibly relax. Iwaizumi stiffens as one of the meerkats tries to nibble at the flowers that are still stuck in his shirt. Mattsun laughs as he pulls the flowers out and puts them in Iwaizumi’s hands.

“Pretty sure these are for you. What do you want to do with them?”

Iwaizumi gently toys with the petals and says, “I’d feel bad just throwing them back out, but they’ll die in the cold, and we’ll get in trouble if we’re found with Warm fairy things.”

“Maybe sneak it back to Watari? He can frost it for you, and he definitely won’t tell anyone.”

Iwaizumi smirks, “So do you want to carry them back in your shirt?”

Mattsun playfully shoves him as they fly off, leading the animals with them, but Iwaizumi handles the hydrangeas with care.

When Oikawa rejoins the Garden fairies in time for the last few minutes of lunch, Hanamaki sees the love-struck look on his face and the bright blush covering his cheeks and decides not to ask.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is hydrangea, for gratitude.


	3. Pink Carnations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, thank you for all the kudos and comments I've gotten for this fic! It really makes me happy that people are enjoying this!
> 
> Second, [FANART!!](http://www.prettysetterss.tumblr.com/post/136505196847/sodap6p-doodles-of-frosted-petals-a-super-cute) Thank you so much, Sim! Everyone should go look at this super cute pic of our main two fairies, and check out some of her other art too!

Helping the animals cross from the Warm Seasons to Winter hasn’t always been Iwaizumi Hajime’s favorite thing. He quite prefers staying deeper within Winter, and doing things like taking ferrets ice sledding. But this year’s Crossing has been quite different. 

A pile of frosted flowers has been accumulating in his home, one for every day that he’s helped the Animals cross (minus the first day). Each flower is different, but all of them are beautiful. Even he, who rarely gets to see any flowers besides poinsettias, can tell that these were well cared for. Last week, he was assigned to squirrel duty, but quickly traded with Kindaichi so he wouldn’t miss the Crossing, and then asked Irihata, the leader of the Animal fairies, to put him on Crossing duty for the rest of the season. He was probably raising suspicion at this point, but those flowers seemed special, somehow. 

Maybe he got caught up in Matsukawa joking that the flowers were for him, but without fail, every Crossing, there they are. It has to be purposeful. 

And maybe he wants to see what the purpose is in the flowers being there. 

He leaves for the Crossing a little earlier than usual, flies a little faster, hoping to find out who exactly is putting them there.

 

* * *

 

This is the first day that Oikawa’s plans have gone awry. 

Everything was fine at this point: make up an excuse to Kuroo for why he couldn’t come that day, find out when the next Crossing was, get to the Border before the Animal talents got there. 

He’s flying above the trees, pink carnations in hand, humming a little, when he suddenly stops in midair. 

Iwaizumi is already there. 

_ I don’t think I left late, did I? _

Oikawa doesn’t want to reveal himself to Iwaizumi now. What if he gets distracted and the Animal fairies find him? 

_ Then I’ll really be in trouble.  _

Or so he tries to reason to himself. Deep down, he knows that he’s afraid- of what the Winter fairy will think of him, of if he’ll want to see him again after putting a face to the flowers, of hitting home the fact that a  _ Warm fairy  _ has been interacting with him. He’s not ready to really face Iwaizumi yet. 

_ But I have to get these flowers to him somehow. _

If he drops the flowers from above, then Iwaizumi might see him, or the flowers may drift off course- after all, the winds are blowing stronger than usual. While Oikawa hides in the branches of the autumn trees, puzzling over how to deliver a bunch of carnations to a fairy standing in the snow, he glances over at Iwaizumi.

Oikawa is so far away, he’s probably imagining the look of perplexion on Iwaizumi’s face.

 

* * *

There’s no flowers there. 

Iwaizumi tries not to be disappointed. For some reason, he’s started to look forward to these flowers, these little bits of life from the Warm side. Every Winter fairy is perfectly content to stay in the cold, but every Winter fairy has also had at least a moment of curiosity about what the other side of Pixie Hollow was like. For Iwaizumi to collect Warm fairy objects is more interaction with the Warm side than most Winter fairies get. 

_ Is it because I’m early? Or are they just not going to appear today? _

Before he can think too hard about it, the Warm Animal fairies appear. They wave amiably, pulling a larger batch of baby bunnies along with them in their giant carrying case.

_ I really need to ask to borrow those sometime.  _

As they encourage the bunnies to leap over the Border and into the snow, Iwaizumi’s mind is only half there. 

 

* * *

 

Oikawa doesn’t have much time if he wants to get these flowers delivered. 

While Kuroo and Kai are busy working, the Garden talent quickly flies around to hide in the shrubs closest to the border. As he tries to figure out how to get the flowers to Iwaizumi, he catches Kuroo speaking up, probably to Iwaizumi, “Hey, we’ve gotten almost all of the animals crossed over. Next week should be the last delivery.”

_ Next week?!  _ Panic shoots through Oikawa.  _ It can’t be over this quickly! And I still haven’t delivered these flowers! _

He has to think of a plan, quick. As Oikawa frantically looks around, he spots a small crate of carrots attached to the carrier, most likely treats for the bunnies. 

_ Time to become an Animal talent,  _ he thinks, smiling as he stealthily reaches over to grab some of the carrots. 

 

* * *

Another baby bunny excitedly bounces over to Iwaizumi and he gives her a big smile and rubs her ears affectionately. 

“That’s the seventh one. Three more to go,” the Warm Animal talent with an awful case of bedhead says, waving at the bunny that looks back at him.

“Are you sure? It looks like you only have one left in the carrier,” Iwaizumi asks confusedly, squinting at the Warm side.

Bedhead and Shaved Head’s eyes go wide and they look at each other, then fly back to the carrier.

“The latch is undone. But I’m sure I locked it while we were delivering the last bunny…” Shaved Head (he really needs to learn their names) mutters.

“Whatever, we just need to find those two bunnies. You go right, I’ll go left?” Bedhead asks, latching the gate and already flying off. While the Warm fairies search for the missing bunnies, Iwaizumi plops down on the snow while the bunnies sit obediently next to him. 

 

* * *

_ I am an actual, certified genius,  _ Oikawa thinks, watching Kuroo and Kai fly off to find the bunnies he lured out with carrots. 

_ Now I have to deliver these flowers.  _ _ Maybe if I go under the bridge, then I can quickly put the flowers there. _

There’s a river under the bridge, one half frozen and the other half flowing. To hide himself, Oikawa has to be knee deep in the water and way closer to the cold than he would like.

_ The things I do for this beautiful boy,  _ he thinks, grumbling silently while feeling his feet squelch in his wet boots.  _ Think of the biceps, Oikawa. Think of the biceps.  _

 

* * *

Iwaizumi is absentmindedly petting one of the calmer bunnies while the rest squeak and chatter behind him. He notices the bunny’s ears perk up beside him as it turns around.

“What is it, girl?”

The bunny squeaks up at him, then turns back to the river.

“You hear something in the river? I hope it’s not one of your siblings.”

He flutters to the bank, bunny hopping behind him.

There’s nothing there. He smiles at the bunny and scratches her head, “Maybe it was some twigs in the current.”

The bunny gives him a very confused, put out look. 

 

* * *

Oikawa’s heart is almost beating out of his chest. 

_ I nearly got caught! _

He saw Iwaizumi going to the river and he flew as fast as he could to hide under the bridge, getting there just in time. He checks on the pink carnations in his hands, breathing a sigh of relief when he observes that they’re not too battered. Sneakily reaching up, he puts the flowers on the bridge right at the edge of the snow-

-and feels something cold suddenly cover his hand.

Something that suspiciously feels like another hand. 

 

* * *

 

An Animal talent needs to be observant of their surroundings, with so many creatures hopping, flying, and running about everywhere. Iwaizumi is no exception to this rule. So when he sees a somewhat tanned  _ hand  _ reaching out from under the bridge, flowers gripped in it, his first instinct is to grab it before it disappears. 

So he does.

Animal talents also have better hearing than other fairies, so he doesn’t miss the quiet squeak (definitely not an animal) from under the bridge. 

He looks back at the bunny, who is definitely giving him an I-told-you-so look. He gives her a grateful smile before turning his attention back to the hand.

_ It’s soft. Warm. _

That thought makes his grip falter, but his curiosity gets the best of him. He gently pulls up on the hand, but whatever’s attached to it seems to be determined to stay under the bridge. He sighs, “Will you just come up here?”

For a few seconds, there’s no response, until a fairy flutters out from under the bridge. When Iwaizumi first sees the fairy in the purple tunic made of flower petals, his first thought is,  _ He’s pretty. _

His second thought is,  _ What is he doing here. _

He chooses to voice only the second thought. 

The fairy wiggles his wrist out of Iwaizumi’s grip, but he doesn’t look like he’s about to run off. He just looks kind of intimidated.

 

* * *

Of all the planning that has gone into this whole I’m-going-to-give-flowers-to-a-Winter-fairy scheme, Oikawa’s never really planned for what he’ll do when he actually meets Iwaizumi. 

Iwaizumi looks expectantly at him and Oikawa is about to open his mouth to speak when he hears the crunching of leaves behind him. He quickly flies back under the bridge.

“Why are you hiding?”

Oikawa shushes him, “If Kuroo or Kai sees me, I’ll be in trouble!”

Iwaizumi doesn’t have a chance to reply before the Warm Animal talents arrive in the clearing, leading two bunnies with them. He straightens up, giving no indication that there’s a fairy hiding under the wooden bridge. 

“Still can’t believe they somehow got the carrots out of the box,” Bedhead (Kuroo? or Kai?) laughs, shaking his head. The Animal talents quickly get the last three bunnies crossed over before waving as they fly off with their carrier. Iwaizumi lets out the breath he’s been holding as soon as they’re out of sight. He instructs the bunnies to stay where they are before saying, “You can come out now. The other fairies are gone.”

The hidden fairy flutters up again, sitting on the warm side of the bridge. Iwaizumi sits down on the snowy part of the bridge across from him. He watches the fairy fiddle with his hair, swept to the side with a familiar white flower pinned to one side.

“Ah, so that flower was yours?”

The Warm fairy startles before nodding, “Yeah. Thank you for giving it back, by the way.”

“I didn’t know it was yours.”

“But you still got it back to me, right?”

“I guess. You’ve been leaving the other flowers here too, right? Was I supposed to throw those back too?”

He jolts, “No! Those were for you.”

“Why?”

The fairy across from him is quiet. 

_ Did I offend him?  _

Just when Iwaizumi goes to apologize, the Warm fairy says, “When I first saw you that day at the Crossing, the day I lost my hair clip, you looked amazing, caring for the animals like that, even the ones that were too excited and knocked you down. 

“The first time I left the flowers, it was just a thank-you gift for getting my clip back to me. But every time after that, it was a chance for me to see what Winter fairies did. I just wanted to learn more about you, y’know?”

Iwaizumi is silent for a few seconds before smiling, “Well, I did appreciate the flowers. They were pretty.”

_ Like you. _

Iwaizumi decides to banish that thought. 

The Warm fairy blushes, “Thank you! I grew them myself.”

“Just like those?” Iwaizumi gestures to the pink flowers still gripped in his hands.

Warm fairy extends his arms, saying, “Yeah. They’re for you. Again.”

Iwaizumi laughs as he takes the flowers into his hands. “Thank you…” He still hasn’t asked for the fairy’s name.

“Oikawa. Oikawa Tooru.”

_ His name is pretty too. _

Another thought banished by Iwaizumi.

“Thank you Oikawa. I’m Iwaizumi Hajime. So you’re a...Flower talent?”

“Garden talent. We plant and grow all the plants and flowers. If you go to the Border between Winter and Spring, you’ll see…”

They talk like that for at least an hour, telling each other about their lives on opposite sides of Pixie Hollow. It’s only when a bunny nudges Iwaizumi does he notice how far the sun is in the sky.

“Oh no! I completely forgot to go back for afternoon work! They’re probably almost done by now…”

Iwaizumi looks a little guilty, but Oikawa is quick to reassure him. “It’s fine! I would much rather be doing this than preparing soil for planting tomorrow.”

The Winter fairy laughs at Oikawa’s expression and the bunny nudges him, obviously insisting that they move. 

“My charges seem to be getting impatient, so...do you want to meet up here tomorrow afternoon?”

Oikawa gives him a big smile and nods.

_ Why is his smile so pretty. Why is he so pretty. _

Iwaizumi gives up trying to banish these thoughts. 

As Oikawa waves and flies back to the Warm side and Iwaizumi leads the bunnies deeper into Winter, pink carnations in his hands, the two fairies can’t help but think that today was one of the most interesting days of their entire lives. 

 

* * *

Kuroo is putting away the carrier, sending Kai off to report to Nekomata, their overseer. He checks over the latch, but doesn’t see any damage to it. Mildly confused, he starts putting away the carrots in the treat case.

Nestled in the vegetables is a pink flower petal. 

Kuroo picks it out, squints at it, and puts it in his pocket, making a note to pay a visit to the Garden talents. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flowers are pink carnations, meaning "I will never forget you."


	4. Coltsfoot

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait! Finals overtook my life :((
> 
> Also, [MORE FANART!!](http://prettysetterss.tumblr.com/post/136788164702/stellarspaceace-fairy-oikawa-inspired-by-the) Thank you Uma! Everyone, please check out this cute pic of Oikawa!

While Oikawa flies back to the Aoba Johsai Village, he wonders how he’s going to explain missing all of afternoon work, instead of only the first hour or so. Makki has been getting more and more suspicious of him lately. He goes to check the fields first and, as he thought, all the fairies have left already, the soil perfectly ready for planting tomorrow. The Garden talent decides to go back to his home and change out of his still unpleasantly wet pants and shoes.

 

_Staying next to the cold for so long didn’t help my clothes dry at all._

 

When his house comes into view, he freezes in midair. Makki and Suga are leaning up against his door. He doesn’t have any time to even think before they notice him and fly right up to him.

 

“Alright Oikawa, where were you?” Makki, who is usually laid back, asks somewhat angrily.

 

Before Oikawa can answer, Suga gasps, “Your pants and shoes! Why are they all wet?”

 

Oikawa opens his mouth, but Makki interrupts, “You’ve started being late to afternoon work, but today you just didn’t show up!”

 

“Guys, please, will you let me talk?”

 

Suga and Makki close their mouths and look at him expectantly. Oikawa sighs, “Can we go inside first? I need to change my clothes.”

 

They look at each other, nod, and follow Oikawa into his house.

 

* * *

 

Oikawa steps out of his room, finally dried off and in a clean, purple petunia tunic, and then groans when he sees Kuroo sitting alongside Suga and Makki at his dining table. His grin is too wide to be innocent, so Kuroo is probably not here just to say hello.

 

“What are you doing here.”

 

“Oh nothing, just wanted to check with you on something,” he says, leaning his elbows on the table and holding up a pink flower petal. Oikawa tenses involuntarily. “Found this in the carrot case. Don’t know why, since every Animal talent knows that carnations give the bunnies bellyaches, and we don’t keep any around our training camp. Plus, I don’t know why any Garden talent would be anywhere near the training camp since, as you said,” Kuroo pitches his voice higher for this part, “ _There’s a super big Garden talent project today, Kuroo, so I can’t make it to the Crossing today!_ ” He ends his mockery of Oikawa winking and with his tongue stuck out to the side.

 

Suga’s eyes go wide. Makki’s eyebrows furrow in confusion. “We didn’t have any special project today. We were just digging holes for planting tomorrow. It really wasn’t anything big or unusual- it just took a little longer since Oikawa wasn’t there.”

 

Suga inhales sharply as the pieces fit together in his mind. His eyes are wide as he whispers, “Oikawa, you didn’t.”

 

The Garden talent sighs and sits down. There’s no point lying anymore. He starts from the very beginning, from losing his magnolia hair clip, all the way through today’s events.

 

“...and we sat and talked together for so long and he was so interesting! Makki, did you know that after we go to the mainland to plant poinsettia seeds in the fall, the Winter fairies get to see them in bloom in the winter? And they make snowflakes for the mainland and no two of them are the same!”

 

“Wait, wait, hold up,” Makki interrupts. “You’re telling me that you, Oikawa I-hate-anything-remotely-cold Tooru, waded through a half-frozen river...to give a Winter fairy flowers?”

 

“Oikawa, I told you not to do it! And what do you do? Not only do you go back to the Border multiple times, you _give the Winter fairy flowers and talk to him?!”_ Suga is almost screeching at this point and Oikawa quickly shushes him.

 

“Do you want to tell the entirety of Pixie Hollow that I’ve been interacting with a Winter fairy?”

 

“Dude, I can’t believe you didn’t tell _me_ ,” Kuroo says, the hurt look on his face not entirely joking. “You didn’t have to lie to me to see this fairy.” Oikawa feels the guilt welling up in him.

 

“I’m sorry I lied to you, Kuroo. And I’m sorry that I avoided you, Makki, Suga. I was just…” He takes a deep breath. “I was afraid of what you would think of me. And that you would keep me from seeing Iwaizumi.”

 

Suga’s eyes soften. “Oikawa, I didn’t want to make you feel bad at all. I just don’t want you getting hurt.”

 

“I hate to admit it, but I’m kinda with Suga on this one,” Makki says quietly. “You know King Ukai’s rule. No Winter fairies in the Warm Seasons, no Warm fairies in Winter. It’s there to protect us.”

 

“But why? Why can’t I talk to a fairy just like me? It’s not like we speak a different language. “

 

“Garden fairies don’t do cold. Even going to the Mainland for the season change from Summer to Fall is harder for us Garden talents than usual. What would happen if you were near the cold for too long?”

 

“Kuroo gets near the border and talks to them.”

 

“Only for business reasons,” he pipes up, frowning slightly.

 

“But no one’s ever said _why_ we can’t be friends with the Winter fairies? All we know is that King Ukai has said we couldn’t.”

 

Suga reaches over to touch Oikawa’s shoulder and says, “How about this: tonight, go to the library and read up on Winter fairies and how to protect yourself from the cold. Because I think we all know that you’re going to go see this Winter fairy, regardless of what we tell you. I can help you, if you want.”

 

Oikawa snorts and nods.

 

“If you know a little more about what you’re getting into, I guess you’ll probably be fine,” Makki assents, shrugging. “But you have to promise to help with _all_ of our work tomorrow.”

 

Oikawa beams at him, “Of course, Makki!”

 

“Don’t think you’re not taking half my seeds for planting tomorrow.”

 

“But Makki…”

 

Suga and Kuroo shake their heads in fond exasperation.

 

* * *

 

After dinner, the Oikawa and Suga fly to the Pixie Hollow Library. The book-keeping fairies are gathering fireflies to light their studies as the sun has begun to set.

 

When suddenly faced with the immense stacks of books, Oikawa realizes he has no idea where to even start.

 

“Can I help you?”

 

A somewhat sleepy-eyed fairy flutters up to him. By his attire and glasses hooked to the front of his shirt, he must be a book-keeping fairy.

 

“I’m looking for some books on the Winter Woods and Winter fairies.”

 

The black-haired fairy raises his eyebrows. “We don’t get very many fairies looking for those books these days. Especially not Garden talents.”

 

Oikawa tenses before the other fairy waves his hand. “Well, whatever your reason, I’m glad that you’re interested in learning more! Follow me.”

 

The garden talent breathes a sigh of relief and flies silently alongside him. Within a minute, they come to a hidden corner of the library. The book-keeping talent squints, puts on his glasses, and begins looking through the dusty shelves. His eyes light up when he finds the one he’s looking for. When he pulls it out, dust goes flying and the two of them sneeze, and then laugh together.

 

“As far as I know, this is one of the only books we have about Winter fairies. I can check some of the official records, if you want.”

 

Oikawa nods, “That would be great.”

 

“C’mon, let’s go back to the main reading area. I’m Ennoshita Chikara, by the way. I’ll meet you at one of the tables if I find anything.”

 

“Nice to meet you, Ennoshita, I’m Oikawa Tooru. Thanks for all your help.”

 

“No problem! I’ll go look for those records now,” and with that, he flies off to another corner of the library, leaving Oikawa at one of the tables. He sighs and sits down, dusting off the book’s cover. He skims over the pages and finds mainly technical details- the wing structures of Winter fairies, the different talent groups, how their ruling system worked, the Pixie Dust transport system to the Winter Woods. It’s only when he nears the end that he finds something interesting.

 

_For nearly all of Pixie Hollow’s recorded history, Winter fairies and Warm fairies have been banned from crossing to the opposite seasons. See_ Ancient Fairy Lore, Ch. 10.

 

He looks up to see Ennoshita flying back with a scroll. “I’ve combed the catalogue and this is the only thing about the Winter Woods, other than supply and trade records.”

 

Oikawa takes it and asks Ennoshita where the Ancient Fairy Lore book is. He smiles, “Now that’s a more common book. I know exactly where it is.”

 

As the book-keeping talent flies off, Oikawa unfurls the scroll.

There’s a lot of legal jumble written, but one phrase catches Oikawa’s eyes.

 

_Be it decreed, to prevent the same pain that befell Karasuno and Nekoma, from this day forward, no Warm fairies may enter the Winter Woods, nor may any Winter fairies enter the Warm Seasons._

 

Oikawa blinks at the phrase, thinking, _It’s not much clearer, but something must have happened between this Karasuno and Nekoma to make this rule._

 

He doesn’t have much time to think before Ennoshita re-enters his vision, holding the book he requested. Oikawa thanks him quickly and opens it, searching for the chapter mentioned in the old book. He hears Ennoshita chuckle and leave with a, “Call me if you need me, alright?” Oikawa hums affirmatively as he finds the chapter.

 

_Chapter 10: Karasuno and Nekoma_

 

_There was once a Warm Fast Flying Talent named Karasuno, born in the summer light with hair as jet black as the crows he was named for. He was the pride and joy of the Fast Flying guild. Though his wings were not as strong as other Fast Flying talents, he directed the winds faster and with more grace than any fairy before._

 

_Karasuno was assigned to direct winds into Winter. This was when he met Nekoma, a Winter Animal talent working near the Border between Winter and Spring, as cunning and sharp as the cats of his namesake. The two immediately struck up a close friendship and rivalry that eventually grew into a deep love and respect. They longed to be together as they were with their friends from their own seasons, and so they crossed._

 

_When Karasuno entered the Winter Woods, the two fairies were ecstatic and flew deeper into Winter happily. Soon, however, Karasuno’s wings could not continue to handle the cold of Nekoma’s home and they began to freeze. Nekoma brought Karasuno back to Spring as quickly as he could, but the strain of the unfamiliar cold and the fairly rapid temperature change from deep Winter to Spring was too much for his wings. Upon entering Spring, Karasuno’s wings shattered._

 

_Although Nekoma was now clearly aware of the danger of being in the Warm seasons, he continued to fly through the Warm Seasons to bring Karasuno to the Warm Healing fairies. Arms holding his beloved and the pieces of his wings, he implored the Healing talents to help Karasuno. However, there is no cure for a broken wing. Nekoma refused to leave his side until Karasuno told him to save his own wings and return to Winter. Reluctantly, he left, but the damage to his wings had already been done. His melted wings were misshapen forever, and he could no longer fly like he used to. The Healing talents only barely managed to save Karasuno himself. The two fairies could no longer see each other, and it was declared from that day forward that Winter and Warm fairies would stay separate forever._

 

Oikawa lifts his head, eyes wide and fingers shaking. He can’t imagine what it must be like to not fly anymore, especially for a Fast Flying talent, whose entire purpose in life was attached to their wings. He continues to stare blankly at the words until he feels something nudge against his hand and break him from his thoughts. Suga is standing by him.

 

“I saw you going with Ennoshita, and when I found you again you looked so absorbed in your book.”

 

Oikawa is silent as he looks from the book to Suga’s face. “You knew about this, didn’t you? About Karasuno and Nekoma?”

 

A sad look crosses over the Water talent’s eyes. “Yes, I did. I read this story a while ago. This is why I’ve been telling you not to get caught up in this Winter fairy- you’d do the same thing as Karasuno.”

 

The Garden talent looks back at the book. He shudders to think of his wings falling into pieces. But he also thinks about the kind of love Karasuno and Nekoma had shared- great enough to risk going into the unknown, for Nekoma to stay by his partner when he was suffering, and for Karasuno to suffer alone for his own partner’s well being.

 

“Is it bad that I still want to go back to the Border?” he asks with a small smile on his face.

 

Suga sighs deeply. “As long as you’re careful. Now you know why I’ve been telling you to just follow King Ukai’s rule.”

 

“I will be careful. But I also think that this is worth a chance.”

 

* * *

 

Iwaizumi watches Watari quickly frost over the light pink flowers and hand them back to him. “This is the, what, seventh flower you’ve brought?”

 

“Eighth,” he says, putting it with the growing pile of frosted flowers in his room.

 

Matsukawa, who is sitting next to him, laughs, “Ever wonder why these specific flowers?”

 

Iwaizumi hums. Maybe he’ll ask Oikawa tomorrow.

 

_Will Oikawa bring more flowers tomorrow, now that we know each other? What will we talk about? I wonder if Kindaichi will take the last bit of my work so I can get there early…_

 

Watari snaps his fingers in Iwaizumi’s face, grinning. “What’s got you so distracted? Does pollen mess with your concentration?”

 

Iwaizumi lightly punches Watari in the shoulder, who grins and punches him back.

 

“But seriously,” Matsukawa says, “you’ve been spaced out ever since you got back from the Crossing.”

 

Iwaizumi sighs and looks at the two fairies in front of him seriously. “OK, what I’m about to tell you, you can’t tell anyone.”

 

They nod, leaning in as Iwaizumi tells them how he met the flower deliverer today.

 

“So the Warm fairy that’s been sending the flowers is cute, eh?” Matsukawa says, wiggling his eyebrows. Iwaizumi shoves him, and he continues to wiggle his eyebrows as he lies on the ground.

 

Watari looks at him, a little concerned. “Iwaizumi, I know you’re a level headed fairy. This is just a reminder that warmth melts frost and you shouldn’t do anything dumb.”

 

Matsukawa has sat up again and is nodding in agreement with Watari. “Also that Lord Takeda's rules say that crossing over is strictly forbidden, and disobeying him clearly falls in the realm of ‘doing something dumb.’”

 

Iwaizumi smiles at his friends as his fingers fidget with the white fur scarf around his neck. “Thanks guys, I’ll make sure to be careful.”

 

Matsukawa slaps him on the back and stands up. “You wanna go ice sledding now? The tracks should be free today.”

 

The Animal talent nods and the three fairies leave his house. But not before Iwaizumi can take another glance at the flowers preserved in ice collecting in his room and feel a small jolt of excitement for tomorrow’s meeting.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is coltsfoot, meaning "concern."


	5. Larkspur and Roses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey so uh  
> It's been a while
> 
> I'm so sorry for the very very very long delay. I ran into quite a few writers blocks, but I have good news! As of now, **I have completely finished writing this story.** I wanted to make sure I had this finished before I started posting again so I wouldn't leave everyone hanging again! I will update every Wednesday. No more long waits! I'm excited to share the rest of this story!

Oikawa has light pink larkspur clutched in his hands as he flies through the perpetual orange and red trees of the Autumn Woods. True to his promise, he made sure he was efficient in his afternoon work, and he’s pretty sure Hanamaki gave him more than half his seeds to plant. The breeze blows a little harder than usual, so he shields the petals with his free hand. 

The Winter Woods comes into view, and the Garden Talent speeds up as he sees Iwaizumi sitting in the snow. He feels like fireflies are fluttering inside his chest and his fingers tighten around the stems of the flowers.

Iwaizumi smiles when he sees him and Oikawa flutters down to the Border. 

“I brought you these,” he says, holding out the flowers. Oikawa can see the blush rise in Iwaizumi’s cheeks, and it makes him giggle as the Winter fairy takes the flowers, turning his head to the side to hide his embarrassed reaction. 

“I didn’t know you liked larkspur so much!” Oikawa laughs as he sits down on the wood bridge.

“I’ve been meaning to ask,” Iwaizumi says as he sits across from him, flowers in his lap, “how do you choose which flowers to bring for me?”

Color rises to Oikawa’s cheeks, matching the blooms in Iwaizumi’s arms, and he sputters out, “I just pick the ones that are the best from my garden!”

Iwaizumi raises an eyebrow, “Sure. Is that what took you so long today?”

Oikawa’s mood is immediately soured. “That was Hanamaki’s fault.”

And with that, Oikawa begins ranting about how many extra seeds he had to plant and how a Harvest talent named Daichi kept distracting Suga and the squirrels that got loose in the planting beds and ate some of the seeds, which made Iwaizumi laugh. They bantered back and forth until the sun started setting, and then reluctantly parted ways, with the promise to meet the next day. 

And so weeks passed by, and Iwaizumi and Oikawa met regularly. Where Oikawa’s garden lost a few flowers daily, Iwaizumi’s room gained in the frosted bouquets. Although they went back to different realms every day, their friends could see the glow they emanated that seemed to be from more than pixie dust.

* * *

Oikawa is already there when he arrives at the Border and he waves excitedly, fluttering a few inches into the air. They both had more work today and agreed to meet later than normal, the sun already setting as he reaches the border. 

“Iwa-chan! You’re looking really happy today! This is a change from your normal face!”

“I told you to stop it with the Iwa-chan,” he mumbles, still smiling and flops onto the snow. “Also I always have the same face and there’s nothing wrong with it. It’s the same one I’ve had since I came to Neverland.”

Oikawa reaches over the snowy divide to place the lavender roses on Iwaizumi’s lap. He quickly pulls back his hand and shakes it to warm it up. Small things like this remind Oikawa of the literal barrier between him and his close friend (maybe something more? Soon? Hopefully?) and made his heart sink just a bit. Iwaizumi’s voice brought him out of his thoughts with an excitement he didn’t often show. 

“Today, Fairy Irihata announced that the fairy penguin is almost ready to hatch! This only happens only every 120 years or so, and there’s only a few fairy penguins out there.” Iwaizumi’s wings vibrate slightly as he announces, “And Fairy Irihata wants me to be one of the caretakers during the hatching! I’m going to be one of the youngest fairies to ever work with a fairy penguin!”

Oikawa’s eyes widen and he gasps, “That’s amazing Iwa-chan! When does it hatch?”

“In a few weeks. I have morning duty to watch over the egg and make sure it’s safe and taken care of.”

Oikawa’s face drops a little and he says, “Does that mean you have to be near the egg at all times? In case it hatches?”

Iwaizumi’s normally stoic face lights up even more, “Nope, the fairy penguin only hatches under the light of the Aurora Borealis! It’s this beautiful green light that outshines every star in the sky. It happens one night a year and it’s the most beautiful thing in all of Pixie Hollow.” 

Oikawa’s mood plummets as he looks wistfully up at the sky behind Iwaizumi. “It sounds wonderful. I wish I could see it.” 

Iwaizumi’s eyes soften and his arm twitches, like he wants to reach out and grab Oikawa’s hand. “Hey, the Aurora Borealis covers all of the Winter Woods. If you come near the Border and fly high enough, you should be able to see it.” 

Oikawa perks up at that, saying, “I definitely will then!” 

Suddenly, there’s a loud crack of a branch on the side of the Winter Woods. The two fairies jolt and immediately look at the now silent, snow covered trees. Iwaizumi’s eyes narrow and he cautiously flits off towards the trees to investigate. A few seconds later, Oikawa hears a rustling behind him and whips around. He flies towards the Autumn Woods, trying to locate the source of it. On closer inspection, Iwaizumi sees the pointed blue leaf tip of a fairy’s shoe nestled in the snow covered pine needles. Oikawa finds the red petunia fabric of a garden fairy’s tunic peeking from the yellow leaves of the trees. At the same time, they both shout, “Aha!” 

Iwaizumi shakes the branches hard, and the snow falls to reveal a sheepish Matsukawa and Watari. Oikawa grabs at the leaves to expose Suga, Hanamaki, and Kuroo hiding behind them.

“What are you two doing here?”

“Well, I kinda wanted to meet the fairy who’s been giving you all these flowers that I frost just about every day.”

“I can’t believe you all followed me! To spy on me! The nerve!”

“We couldn’t help it! Every time we get a break, you don’t stop talking about him. We just wanted to see the famous Iwaizumi Hajime in person.”

The two fairies sighed and began leading their friends towards the border. While Oikawa and Iwaizumi stand at the edge of the border, their friends stand at the far end of the bridge on their respective sides. Iwaizumi gestures to his friends, “This is Watari Shinji, Frost talent, and Matsukawa Issei, Animal talent.” They wave in turn.

“Hey, I’ve seen you guys around. We never really got to talk though. Kuroo Tetsurou, Animal talent.” The two Winter Animal talents nod and smile at him.

“Hanamaki Takahiro, Garden talent,” he says, pointing double finger guns at them.

“Sugawara Koushi, Water talent, but call me Suga,” he says, now that Oikawa is not silencing him. 

“Ah, I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Hanamaki pipes up, “Also, we meant to come get you because dinner is almost over and you should go get some food.”

Oikawa’s eyes widen and he jumps to his feet. “I’ll see you tomorrow, right Iwa-chan?”

Iwaizumi laughs at his reaction and waves him off, “See you tomorrow.”

Oikawa waves and zooms off towards the dining hall and the Warm fairies wave before flying off behind him. 

Iwaizumi continues to look off into the Autumn Woods where the Warm fairies laughed and flew together. He feels two harsh slaps on his back and turns to glare at Watari and Matsukawa. They smile good naturedly at him and motion for him to follow them back into their own home. 

“You weren’t kidding, Iwaizumi, he really is cute,” Matsukawa grins as he wiggles his eyebrows excessively and then gets a shove from Iwaizumi. 

Watari laughs at their antics and gently takes the flowers from Iwaizumi’s hands to frost them. “You know, for all that you two seem different, you really seem happier with him.”

“Ha, gay,” Matsukawa bellows, and Iwaizumi begins to chase him to put him in a headlock, and Watari continues to laugh and flies after them, still holding the roses carefully. 

Later that night, Iwaizumi looks up at the night sky and imagines the beautiful light that will fill it soon. He remembers how Oikawa talked about rainbows, like every single color painted the sky and Light talents bottling them up for the mainland. For every thing that Oikawa says that he has never experienced, there’s something that he has lived that will never touch Oikawa. Iwaizumi thinks, against his better judgement, _If only we could see each other’s worlds together._

* * *

Oikawa makes it in time to snag dinner before the baking and cooking talents retire for the night. Although he gets teased while he eats, he can tell that putting a face to a name has made the others start trusting Iwaizumi. Before he goes to bed that night, he looks out his window towards the Winter Woods, barely visible from his home. 

_Every day we meet, I just want to pull him over and show him everything that he’s never gotten to see. I want to see everything the Winter Woods holds._

_I just wish we could cross together._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flowers are pink larkspur, meaning "beautiful soul" and lavender roses, meaning "enchantment."
> 
> This chapter was actually inspired by [real events](http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/fairy-penguin-born-at-bronx-zoo-for-the-first-time-in-120-years-w431540) which got me out of my big writers block!
> 
> Also, when Iwaizumi was talking about the penguin, [this is the most accurate portrayal of his face.](https://www.google.com/url?q=http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/haikyuu/images/3/37/Oikawa_the_Fish.png/revision/latest?cb%3D20151229073343&sa=D&ust=1483560319944000&usg=AFQjCNGz7b_rwh_7Swr6la3sWxeh92QMBw)


	6. Camellia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm so glad that people are enjoying this fic! We're getting more into the plot now, so get excited!

In the following weeks, Iwaizumi seemed to get more and more tired with every day that passed. Even though his eyelids drooped, he talked passionately about all the caretaking duties he had and how the egg changed every day. Oikawa listened attentively, and knew when to begin chattering about his own day when Iwaizumi began to lose what little energy he had left. It was somewhat halfhearted chattering, though. Part of Oikawa took the time to admire Iwaizumi in the setting sun, and another part mulled over all the amazing things that were happening in Winter that he would never get to see. If Iwaizumi noticed his distraction, he didn’t say anything. 

A few days before the Aurora Borealis and the hatching of the fairy penguin, Iwaizumi’s exhaustion finally caught up to him. The two fairies were lying side by side, and Oikawa was talking about the prank Hanamaki had played on Suga and how Makki was consequently unable to fly for the rest of the day because of his wet wings. When Iwaizumi made no response, Oikawa looked over to see that he was fast asleep. Oikawa giggled at the fact that Iwaizumi drooled slightly in his sleep. And then all was silent, except for the sounds of the two fairies breathing. 

_His wings are pressed up against the snow. If those were my wings, I wouldn’t be able to sleep. Is it comfortable for him? Does he sleep in a bed of snow or ice?_

In all the time Oikawa has spent with Iwaizumi, he’s never gotten the courage to even touch the snow. Part of it is knowing that Iwaizumi would probably scold him, but another part remembers the story of Karasuno and thinks, _What if my fingers fall off?_

But today, Oikawa is feeling a little brave. 

He inches his fingers closer to the border, checking to see that Iwaizumi is still sleeping (he doesn’t seem like he’ll wake up soon). Looking around, Oikawa darts his arm into Winter and immediately pulls it back.

_Huh. That didn’t hurt._

He puts his arm over the border again and allows the chill to set over his hand. When he pulls his arm back, it feels fine as it warms up. Looking around again, he sticks his face over the border and pulls back at the unexpected bite of the wind at his nose. It wasn’t entirely unpleasant though. 

Oikawa looks down at Iwaizumi, who is still asleep. A mischievous smirk sets on his lips as he tries touching the snow. Once his fingers get used to the sensation, he begins piling it on Iwaizumi’s chest. He tries to stifle his giggles at the small mountain of snow on the sleeping fairy.The amusement wears out quickly as he gets no reaction from Iwaizumi, barring his head flopping to one side. The sun is setting quickly and Oikawa knows he has to leave soon. 

“Iwa-chan, I’m gonna find a way to come to Winter so you can show me the fairy penguin and ice sledding and all the amazing things you do here.”

Oikawa gently arranges the pink camellias in Iwaizumi’s hand, gives him a fond smile, then flies off towards the dining hall. 

Iwaizumi’s eyes open. He shakes off the pile of snow and sits up, looking pensively at the camellias. 

_I should be restraining him. I should be telling him to go back far into the Warm Seasons and never come to this border again._

_So why do I want him to cross so badly?_

* * *

“I didn’t expect to see you here again.”

Oikawa flutters his wings indigantly. “That’s no way to talk to someone who’s asking for your help, Chika-chan.”

Ennoshita seems surprised by the nickname, then writes it off as another one of Oikawa’s quirks. “Which obscure subject are you looking to read up on today?” he asks, already flying up.

“Something on how to keep wings warm.”

Ennoshita pauses and looks back at Oikawa silently. He can feel the sweat beading on his neck as the other fairy muses, “For a Garden talent, you’re really into the cold.”

“I’m just preparing for the changing of the seasons to fall! My wings are sensitive, and I want to be able to stay longer and help everyone when the temperature starts dropping.”

It’s not a complete lie- he usually returns to Pixie Hollow before the chill of autumn can get too uncomfortable. Ennoshita seems to accept his answer and tells him to wait while he flits off towards the different stacks of books. He comes back soon with a couple books and leaves with a “Be careful with Wingology, let me know if you need anything else!”

Oikawa sits down and grabs _Wingology_ first. That turns out to be a mistake, because as soon as he opens the wing shaped book, it begins flying around. He’s sure Ennoshita is laughing at him as he chases it around and finally grabs it. He breathes a sigh of relief as he begins flipping through the book. 

_Temperature Sensitivity: Fairies of certain talents may be more susceptible to discomfort from more extreme temperatures. For example, Garden talents cannot withstand the same cold temperatures that Fast Flying talents can. This characteristic is inherent to the fairy and cannot be changed by any means._

Oikawa sighs, mutters, “Ok, I already knew that, thank you,” closes the book and puts it aside. 

The other book Ennoshita found him is titled _Blooming in the Fall_. On the cover, there’s a cutesy picture of a Garden fairy standing against a pile of orange-yellow leaves. Oikawa flips it open and is met with a cloud of dust. Coughing, he waves it aside and begins to read. 

_For Garden talents, turning Summer into Fall becomes more of a challenge than changing Winter into Spring. This is because in Spring, Light fairies lead the way and bring enough heat that by the time Garden talents begin working, the temperature has already risen. To help your Garden talent friend bring beautiful autumn leaves to the mainland, bring along an extra blanket or cloak. If you see them struggling with the cold, encourage them to take a break and have a Light talent heat up a blanket for them. The heated blanket will help keep their wings flexible and they should be able to begin working again in no time! This method prevents a fairy from flying, so assure that your Garden fairy friend is in a safe location._

Oikawa closes the book with a big smile crossing his face. He knows exactly how to get to the Winter Woods and who can make it happen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is the pink camellia, which means "longing for you."


	7. Stephanotis

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again everyone! There's some new characters in this chapter! Enjoy!

Tinker's Nook is virtually always bustling with activity, but Oikawa knows that the fairy he's looking for doesn't work a minute after the sun starts setting. He has to fly to the border, leave a bouquet of stephanotis along with a note telling Iwa-chan that something came up and to get some rest, and then flies back to Tinker's Nook.    
  
After touching down, he peeks into all the little rooms, Tinker fairies hard at work. He soon finds a two toned head looking straight down at his workspace, putting things away in little containers.    
__   
If I want to get anything out of him, I have to make sure not to startle him.   
  
He raps gently on the doorframe and says, "Kenma! How are you doing?"   
  
Kozume Kenma looks up at him, hands frozen in place until he recognizes Oikawa and relaxes slightly. He nods silently, still looking at him warily.    
  
"So I heard the Tinker's Ball is coming up soon-"    
  
"I don't think you're here to ask me to the Ball, so please just tell me what you want. It's less troublesome for both of us."    
  
Oikawa sighs. Nothing gets past Kenma, but it was worth a try.    
  
"I was going to ask you to help me with some Garden Talent projects so you could skip the Ball."    
  
Kenma quirks an eyebrow, looking interested. It's no secret that Kenma tends to try and escape social events as quickly as possible.    
  
"And what did you need from me?"   
  
"I actually need your help with a project of my own. I'm trying to make some heating blankets so Garden fairies can work longer in the Fall once the temperature drops. I read about it in the library, but I want to have it so the heat lasts without a Light talent heating it up."    
  
Kenma's eyes are wide, and is silent while he thinks and grabs a sketchbook to write down his ideas.    
  
"I think I know what can help. Pixie dust can help trap heat, so if we get a Light fairy to heat up the blanket and then some Pixie dust all over it, it should stay heated for a while. If we pair it with some insulating material, like sunflower petals and leaves, it should last a while."    
  
The Tinker fairy’s expression hasn't changed much, and Oikawa knows that he'll never admit it, but with how much he's talking, Kenma is really excited about this.    
  
"I can get you sunflower leaves. How many will you need?"    
  
"Get me eight, just in case I need a little extra. If you could get them to me tomorrow morning, I'll start working on them and let you know once I have a prototype ready," Kenma says as he continues to sketch and make notes.    
  
"Thank you so much, Kenma!"   
  
Suddenly, Oikawa remembers a little hitch that could happen in his plans and adds, “Oh, and don't tell Kuroo about this. I want it to be a surprise,” he says, one finger over his mouth.   
  
“...Kuro isn't a Garden Talent? He has no use for this?"   
  
"Ah, but you know how big of a mouth Kuroo has. It would get all over Pixie Hollow in a day."    
  
Kenma's mouth quirks and he nods in agreement.  Oikawa takes that as the conversation ending and leaves with an "I'll see you tomorrow morning!"    
  
Oikawa flies off to Sunflower Meadow to get some sunflower leaves. When he gets there, he weaves in and out of the stalks, looking for the largest leaves. As he plucks a particularly large one, he hears some hooting, but not from an owl. Oikawa goes to investigate and finds Bokuto Koutarou, a Light talent, flying around a sunflower, yelling and hooting loudly. On said sunflower sits Akaashi Keiji, a Dust talent.    
  
_ Perfect. _   
  
"Hello Bokuto, Akaashi!"   
  
Bokuto finishes his midair flip and shouts a "Hi Oikawa!" while Akaashi waves at him. Bokuto flies over to him and asks, "Whatcha doin with all those leaves?"    
  
"Kenma is helping me with a project and I'm getting some materials for him."    
  
"Ooo, what kind of project?"    
  
Oikawa hesitates. The only fairy with a bigger mouth than Kuroo is Bokuto. But if he wants Bokuto and Akaashi's help, he has to tell them something.    
  
"I'm helping Kenma with a project for my team. We're making heated blankets to help Garden fairies work longer in Fall. I was actually going to ask you two for help," he explains, looking over to Akaashi. "Kenma says we'll need a Light and Dust fairy to heat these things up and keep them warm."    
  
"That's so cool! We'll totally help, right Akaashi?"   
  
"Of course. It sounds really interesting," Akaashi says with a small smile.    
  
"Ah, but please don't tell anyone about this. I don't want it to end up getting to my team and then ruining the surprise."    
  
"Well, you've told Bokuto so you've basically told all of Pixie Hollow," Akaashi smiles.    
  
"Hey! I can keep a secret. I never told anyone about the time you set off three fire alarms in the Dust Depot and then blamed it on Komi."   
  
"Bokuto..."   
  
Bokuto immediately slaps his hands over his mouth and begins apologizing loudly, almost in tears. Akaashi smiles at him and says, "Don't worry, I'll keep him in line."    
  
Oikawa knows that Akaashi will make sure his plans don't get _all_ over Pixie Hollow by the end of the week. He smiles back gratefully and says, "Thank you so much. I'll talk to you when Kenma finishes making the blankets."    
  
He waves and flies off, leaving the emotional Bokuto in Akaashi's hands, literally.    
  
Oikawa breathes a sigh of relief when he finally gets back to his home. He's ready to use some of his eucalyptus bath oils today. As he soaks and looks out at the stars, he remembers that the Aurora Borealis was happening the next night.    
  
__ I wonder what Iwa-chan is doing now. If I'm lucky, I'll be able to see for myself in a few days.   
  
For the first time in his life, he goes to sleep dreaming of frosted trees and snowflakes.    
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is Stephanotis, which means "desire to travel."


	8. Violet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again everyone! This chapter is slightly shorter than usual, but there's some fluffy stuff involved here. This is the final bit of set up before the next big part of the plot!

The stars shine bright over Pixie Hollow, and most of the fairies are fast asleep. Among those awake is Oikawa, who has to sneak out of his house, fly high up, and bolt towards the Border. He knows that the next morning will be painful to get through, but he needs to see the Aurora Borealis. 

 

When he gets there, the only lights in the sky are the stars he’s always seen. 

 

_ Did I miss it? _

 

As soon as he thinks that, in the distance, the sky bursts to life with a glowing green light. It sways and twists like a giant ribbon, hints of red and yellow joining it. Oikawa’s mouth drops as he flies as close as he can to it. The only thing that stops him is the biting winds at the edge of the border. 

 

_ It’s absolutely beautiful, like a rainbow at night, only better. And Iwa-chan is somewhere in there, taking care of a baby penguin. I wish I could be there with him. Of course I had to fall in love with a Winter fairy- _

 

At that thought, Oikawa jerks back and claps a hand over his mouth. He continues to stare at the lights, but his mind is flying in a different direction. 

 

_ I always liked Iwa-chan, but I didn’t think it would end up like...this.  _

 

He continues to flutter his wings, and even though they get tired after a while, he stays there, captivated by the lights. After about an hour, they begin to fade out, and Oikawa only starts heading home after every thread of green light has disappeared into starry sky. He is silent as he falls into bed and pulls the rose petal cover over himself. 

 

_ I wonder if Iwa-chan would ever like me back… _

 

Oikawa doesn’t get that much sleep that night, and it’s not because of the beauty of the green lights. 

 

* * *

 

Oikawa drops off the sunflower leaves with Kenma before he goes off to the fields, and he is fidgety and drowsy for the rest of the day. He feels blessed that neither Suga nor Hanamaki mention it. 

 

After work is finished, he flies back home to pick some white violets that had just bloomed the day before. He continues to fidget all the way to the Border. But he can tell from a distance that the fairy standing there is not Iwaizumi- he's too tall and his hair isn't spiky enough. When he lands, Matsukawa waves at him, standing somewhat far from the border.

 

“Sorry I'm not the one you're looking for. Iwaizumi has been busy with the baby penguin since last night, and he asked me to tell you that he's sorry for not being able to make it.” 

 

“Oh no, it's no problem! I was busy myself yesterday. Is he doing alright?” 

 

Matsukawa chuckles, “He’s very frazzled and sleep deprived, but really happy for the penguin. He turns into a big ball of goo every time it looks at him. He keeps cooing and talking in a high pitched voice whenever he talks to it.” 

 

Oikawa laughs at the image of stoic, rough and rugged Iwaizumi acting like a mother to the baby bird. 

 

“Do you know when he'll have a little more free time?” 

 

“Give it a few days. After the penguin is five days old, the parents can take care of the baby more easily. Since Iwaizumi is a younger fairy, he'll probably be done with the majority of his duties by the day after tomorrow.” 

 

“Oh, good,” Oikawa sighs. That sigh may have been a bit too deep because Matsukawa chuckles and says, “Only a day and you miss him that much, huh?” 

 

Oikawa feels his cheeks reddening, but Matsukawa shakes his head. “It's all cool. I can tell how much you care about each other.”

 

“Ah, also can you take this?” he asks, holding out the white violets. Matsukawa’s sleepy eyes widen as Oikawa’s arm goes straight into Winter. He quickly takes the flowers and pushes Oikawa’s arm back into Fall.

 

“Be careful! Your arm could have broken in the cold.”

 

Oikawa shrugs, “It's really not that bad. Anyways, I'm trying to prepare myself for when we change the seasons to Fall on the Mainland.”

 

Matsukawa nods skeptically. “I'll get Watari to frost these for Iwaizumi again. I should get going soon. I'll see you around,” he says, waving. 

 

Oikawa watches him flutter away, and reminds himself that it'll only be a few days until he can safely be in the Winter Woods . 

 

* * *

 

When Oikawa goes to check in on Kenma, he finds bits of leaf clippings strewn in his hair, head over his workspace, fingers carefully sewing something together. He watched the fairy hard at work until Kenma lifts his head and nods at Oikawa. 

 

“How's it going, Kenma?”

 

“Well. I've gotten a few prototypes done. I should have a fully functional one ready to test in a few days.” 

 

“Ah thank you Kenma!” Oikawa says, looking at the leaf coats on the mannequins and the bundles that look like little heat packs sewn to the backs. 

 

“No, thank  _ you _ , Oikawa. I finally have Fairy Oiwake off my wings about starting an independent project. I think he cried a little. Futakuchi has been annoying about it, but Aone has been making sure he stays at his own workstation.” 

 

Oikawa laughs thinking about severe Fairy Oiwake tearing up and stone faced Aone pulling a smirking Futakuchi away from Kenma. 

  
  
"Bokuto and Akaashi agreed to help us with this. Should I ask them to meet us the day after tomorrow?" 

  
  
Kenma nods, "I should be done by then." 

  
  
"Alright, I'll let you get back to work. Thank you Kenma!"   
  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flowers are white violets, which mean, "Let's take a chance on happiness."
> 
> Comments give me life! Please let me know your thoughts on the story so far!!


	9. Red and White Roses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Exciting things happen in this chapter! But before we get there, [check out this cool fanart of Iwaizumi!!](http://prettysetterss.tumblr.com/post/156554715157/tainted-126-there-was-winter-in-his-eyes) Thank you so much for the wonderful art!

"Wow, these are so cool!"  
  
Bokuto's mouth is open in almost a perfect circle as he flutters around the finished coats. Akaashi is a bit quieter in expressing his praise: "They look amazing."  
  
Kenma seems more receptive to Akaashi's compliments, smiling at him silently. Oikawa and the other three fairies are standing in the middle of the Autumn Woods, ready to test the coats.  
  
"So how do these things work?" Bokuto asks, picking it up and poking at it.  
  
Kenma gently grabs it and holds it up. "Bokuto, I need you to focus some light on these six heat packs in the coat. They're filled with crushed and shaved sunflower seeds, so they'll absorb heat easily."  
  
Bokuto nods, raises his arm, and focuses the sunlight with precision onto the bundles. For all his antics and dramatics, Bokuto is really one of the best Light talents in Pixie Hollow. The light is steady and covers the heat packs without burning through the surrounding sunflower leaves.  
  
Oikawa holds up a small leaf bag and says, "We can use my Pixie Dust when these things are heated up."

Kenma nods, holds his hand near the packs, then nods at Akaashi. He takes the leaf bag, opens it and raises his eyebrows.  
  
"This is a full day's worth of dust."  
  
"Yeah, I saved a little from yesterday and only used enough to fly over here."  
  
"Are you sure you want to use all this?"  
  
Oikawa nods. Kenma instructs Akaashi in applying the Pixie Dust so that it traps the heat in but doesn't make the jacket levitate. After the bundle is covered, Bokuto focuses the light even more on it. The concentrated light removes the quality of flight from the Pixie Dust while still retaining its heat trapping ability.  
  
Or, so Kenma explains.  
  
"Alright, it looks good. Oikawa, do you want to try it now?" Kenma asks, holding the jacket out to him.  
  
Oikawa takes the jacket and puts it on, wings folded down. It fits perfectly, and there's a comfortable warmth at his back. Akaashi holds out the leaf bag to him.  
  
"There's still a little left in there."  
  
Oikawa takes it and attaches it to the belt on his long pants. "I'll go walk around here and see how long it lasts. I'll find Kenma when I'm done."  
  
Kenma shrugs and starts flying off. "You know where I'll be, come tell me if anything goes wrong."  
  
Bokuto bolts off, whooping, "Yay! Now I can go see Kuroo and the owls!"  
  
Akaashi shakes his head fondly. "I'm going back to the Dust Depot to see if they need help."  
  
Oikawa waves, "Thank you for you help!"  
  
And with that, Oikawa walks as fast as he can to the Winter Woods. On the way, he thinks about his encounter with Watari at the Border the day before. While handing off the bouquet of red and white roses to be frosted, Watari mentioned that because Iwaizumi had worked so hard, Fairy Irihata made him take the entire next day off. Upon hearing that, Oikawa had asked Watari to get Iwaizumi to come to the Border at 10. By the position of the sun, Oikawa believes he's on time.  
  
His prediction is proven correct when he sees a spiky haired fairy at the Border. Just seeing Iwaizumi after a few days makes Oikawa so much happier. He runs up, waving and yelling, “Iwa-chan!”

Iwaizumi smiles, waving back. Even he looks relieved to see Oikawa.  
  
"Iwa-chan, I missed your grumpy face so much!"  
  
...And there's the trademark Iwaizumi scowl.  
  
"My face isn't grumpy! And I missed your shitty face too!"  
  
"I didn't know you could tell someone you missed them while insulting them."  
  
"You did it first!"  
  
"No, I was just making an observation."  
  
Iwaizumi looks like he's going to hit him, but then he gets a good look at what Oikawa is wearing.  
  
"Why are you all bundled up like this?"  
  
Oikawa grins, "I've got a surprise for you, Iwa-chan, but I need you to back up a bit."  
  
He looks skeptical but steps back anyways. Oikawa takes a deep breath and walks right over the Border.  
  
"What are you doing?" he yells, about to push Oikawa back.  
  
"No, no, it's alright! This coat has heating pads to keep my wings warm! I got one of my friends to make it for me," he explains, guiding Iwaizumi's arms around him to feel the warmth on his back. Iwaizumi's eyes are wide.  
  
"I can't believe this. So you're safe here?"  
  
"Yup. These heat packs should last for a while," Oikawa smiles. The next thing he realizes, two strong arms are wrapped around him. It takes a moment for him to reciprocate. Iwaizumi, suprisingly, isn't as cold as he thought he would be. It's less like a glass of iced tea and more like a refreshingly cool shower.

_These biceps were worth all the trouble._

  
Soon, Iwaizumi lets go and gestures deeper into the Winter Woods. "Come on, I'll show you around."  
  
"How far away is everything else?" Oikawa asks, because all he sees is an endless expanse of snow and trees.  
  
"There's should be some weasels that can help us up ahead."  
  
And with that, Oikawa walks away from the Warm Seasons and follows Iwaizumi into his home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flowers are red and white roses, which, when given together, stand for "unity."
> 
> Please leave a comment and/or kudos if you liked this! I love hearing from you all!


	10. Calendula

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry for the delayed update! Life caught up with me yesterday. But today is for exploring the Winter Woods!

They talk as Oikawa walks and Iwaizumi flies beside him. Iwaizumi talks all about the penguin, illuminated by green light and how it cried for three hours straight while they tried to figure out what it needed. As he's talking about the feeding process, Iwaizumi stops suddenly. Oikawa opens his mouth but Iwaizumi shushes him. He whistles gently, and a weasel sticks its head out from behind a tree.

  
  
"Hey Spruce, could you help me out?"

  
  
The weasel scampers over to Iwaizumi and he scratches her head. "My friend hurt his wings and he can't fly. Could you help him get to the Training Grounds? I'll get you some cranberries when we get there."

  
  
Spruce nods and crouches in front of Oikawa.

  
  
"I don't know, Iwa-chan, I'm not that good with animals..."

  
"It's ok, Spruce is a really calm weasel. Isn't that right?" Spruce squeaks her assent.

  
"Alright then," Oikawa says, climbing onto the weasel's back. She takes a few steps forward and nods at Iwaizumi.

  
_Well, this isn't so bad._

  
"Alright Spruce, can you keep up?" Spruce nods and squeaks.

  
_Wait, what._

  
That's Oikawa’s only warning before Iwaizumi bolts forward and the weasel runs after him. Oikawa barely hangs onto the weasel's neck and is screaming for the entire ride. He uses one arm to hold down the back of his coat so the wind doesn't blow it off his back. When they come to a sudden halt, Oikawa clutches to Spruce so he won't fly straight off of her.

  
"We're here! Thank you Spruce, I'll go get your cranberries."

  
"Why are you so calm? I could have died out there! I wasn't made for high speed weasel rides!"

  
"The fact that you're still complaining means that you're alright," he says with a smirk, tossing the cranberries to Spruce, who jumped up to catch them.

  
Oikawa grudgingly admits that, after he's finally gotten off the weasel, it was actually kinda fun moving that fast.

  
But he only admits it on the inside.

 

The heating pods are poking uncomfortably at his wings and Oikawa adjusts the jacket to shift them back into place just as Iwaizumi throws the last cranberry. He waves as the weasel runs off to the other animals, who have Winter Animal fairies fluttering around them.

  
"It doesn't look that different from our Animal Grounds," Oikawa muses.

 

One of the Animal Talents with super spiky hair, like a shallot, flies over to them.

 

"Iwaizumi-senpai, you're supposed to be taking the day off. And who is this?"

 

"Oikawa, this is Kindaichi Yuutarou. He's one of the newer Animal Talents. Kindaichi, this is Oikawa Tooru. He...uh, he overflew a couple of days ago, so the doctor told him to rest his wings for a few days, and I'm keeping him company."

 

Kindaichi squints at him. "I don't think I've ever seen you around before."

 

Oikawa and Iwaizumi look at each other nervously before Kindaichi smiles and says, "Well, the more the merrier! I was about to meet Kunimi for lunch. Do you want to come with me?"

 

They agree, but before they can move, Spruce pads up to them and begins sniffing Oikawa. Iwaizumi laughs as Oikawa shies away from her.

 

“Don’t worry, she’s just curious and wants to get to know you better.”

 

“This really isn’t how I get to know someone.”

 

Spruce chitters at him and then crouches down in front of Oikawa again.

 

“Wow, I think she wants to take you around! How did you do it? Are you an Animal talent? How-”

 

“Just let him get it all out. Kindaichi can get excited a little easily.”

 

Oikawa nods and hesitantly pats Spruce’s head and she purrs up at him.

 

“You know, you’re not so bad. Just, go a little slower please?”

 

He yelps and giggles as she jumps up and licks his face. He’s so caught up in the ball of fur on top of him that he doesn’t see Iwaizumi looking at him with a small smile and adoring eyes.

 

“Alright, let’s go!”

 

The sun is higher in the sky by the time they reach another tiny forest of snow covered trees. Fairies sit in the branches and fly around the trunks. Oikawa watches, astonished, at the fairies grabbing a handful of snow, spinning it into a disk, then throwing it into a basket. He catches one in midair and marvels at its intricate design.

 

“Never two identical. It’s amazing how they do it.”

 

Oikawa looks up at Iwaizumi. He sees so much pride in his eyes for all the Winter Talents. He looks over to Kindaichi flying up the tree to a bored looking fairy and casually chatting.

 

“The two of them arrived around the same time, and they’ve been friends ever since, even though they’re not the same talent.”

 

_Could that have been me and Iwa-chan if we arrived in the same season?_

 

“You doing alright?”

 

Iwa-chan is looking at him worriedly and Oikawa decides that his face is too beautiful to look anywhere near sad.

 

“Yeah, this is great! What should we do next?”

 

Iwaizumi’s eyes light up and he motions to Spruce and they’re bounding off again, waving to Kindaichi and Kunimi. Iwaizumi talks about all the different parts of life in the Winter Woods and Oikawa can’t stop looking around at all the things happening around them. Fairies zip in and out of the trees, indifferent to the cold. When he looks at Iwaizumi again, the light shining through his wings makes him look ethereal. Oikawa is pretty sure he stops breathing for a bit. He’s shaken out of his reverie by Spruce’s sudden stop.

 

There’s a giant circular dome in front of them with snow packed on its edges. Iwaizumi motions for Oikawa to get off and for Spruce to stay there. She nods and curls up, almost invisible in the snow.

 

“There’s something important I have to show you,” Iwaizumi says as he grabs Oikawa’s hand and leads him to the dome. When they go in through the door, a blast of cold air hits Oikawa in the face and he shivers visibly. Iwaizumi laughs at his reaction and continues to pull him inside.

 

“Alright, you’ve gotta be quiet here. She’s usually sleeping around this time. Hey, Mizoguchi!”

 

In the center of the room is a giant pile of snow that looks like a nest. A tall, blonde fairy is sitting in front of it and he waves back at Iwaizumi.

 

“Iwaizumi, go home. You’re not supposed to be here,” Mizoguchi says, smiling and slapping him on the back.

 

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll leave soon. This is my friend, Oikawa. He can’t fly because he overflew and I’m keeping him company for the day. Could I show him our collective child real quick?”

 

Mizoguchi looks Oikawa up and down and nods. “Alright, but don’t disturb her. We’ve just gotten her to go to sleep.”

 

Oikawa nods and follows Iwaizumi’s up the stairs to the snow nest. When he looks inside, there’s a small black ball of fluff curled up and breathing softly.

 

“There she is. We named her Dawn. Lord Ittetsu is a huge fan of literature and he suggested that we name her after Aurora, a human goddess of the dawn.”

 

Oikawa has never been anything close to an Animal talent, but looking at this baby penguin makes him understand why Iwa-chan loves what he does. He feels the hand around his lift up, and when he looks to Iwaizumi, his eyes are asking him to trust him. Oikawa nods, and Iwaizumi guides his hand to the penguin to gently pat her head. He lets Iwaizumi run his hand over her back and he feels how soft her feathers are. Dawn snuggles into her nest as Iwaizumi brings their hands back to their sides.

 

“We should let her rest and there’s more I have to show you. Come on,” he says, leading Oikawa back to the front of the dome. Oikawa is honestly stunned by the entire experience.

 

“Bye, Mizoguchi, I’ll see you tomorrow!”

 

“See ya. Also, Iwaizumi,” Mizoguchi says, wiggling his eyebrows excessively, “Go get ‘em.”

 

Iwaizumi turns a bright shade of red and he pulls Oikawa out of the dome immediately. Once they’re outside, Oikawa puts his hands on Iwaizumi’s face and teases, “Wow Iwa-chan! I didn’t know Winter fairies could be this warm! Are you feeling alright? Should I let you ride Spruce for a bit?”

 

Iwaizumi promptly shoves him sideways and Oikawa falls to the snow laughing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is calendula, which means "joy."
> 
> Are you enjoying all this fluff? :)  
> Aren't they so cute having fun together? :)  
> Don't worry, there's still more fluff about to happen :)
> 
> :)


	11. Ambrosia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Full fluff ahead!

It is already afternoon, and Oikawa and Iwaizumi are making their way to Iwaizumi’s house. They chat comfortably as they travel through another forest of pines. Iwaizumi stops them in front of a particularly tall tree. 

 

“Well, my home is up here,” he says, pointing to a hole in the tree about halfway up. Spruce squeaks at Iwaizumi and he nods.

 

“Yeah, you should visit your friends while you’re in the area. Thank you for all your help today, Spruce,” he says, reaching to rub her head. Oikawa dismounts and pats her head too. He gets a lick to the face before Spruce bounds off into the trees. 

  
  


Oikawa looks back up at the tree and opens his mouth to ask how he’s supposed to get up there. But instead of words, a shriek comes out of his mouth as Iwaizumi lifts him up in a princess carry. Oikawa scrambles to grab Iwaizumi, but he feels the secure grip around him. He is by no means light, but Iwaizumi flies up to his house like he isn’t carrying anything. Within a few seconds he’s set down inside. 

 

_ Those biceps are unreal.  _

 

“You enjoy the ride up here?” Iwaizumi smirks. Oikawa can only nod. 

 

He looks around to see a modestly decorated living room and kitchen with minimal clutter. He sits on the couch made of pine wood and leaf cushions while Iwaizumi goes to get some drinks from the kitchen. While he waits, Oikawa wishes he could take off the jacket so he could put the heating pods back into place. He can tell a few of them have been jostled so out of place that they’ve fallen out of the jacket. Iwaizumi comes back a few minutes later with two mugs. 

 

“I thought you might be a little tired of the cold so I got you some hot tea,” he says as he gives the steaming one to Oikawa. He keeps the mug of iced tea for himself. They continue to talk as they drink their tea.

 

_ I haven’t had this much fun in so long. I don’t want to leave.  _

 

Long after their drinks are finished, Oikawa jumps up and says, “Iwa-chan, I want to see your room!”

 

He bounds off laughing before Iwa-chan can protest. Although Iwaizumi chases after him, it’s a little half hearted because he knows Oikawa will find some way to get to his room in the end. The room before him is organized, like the rest of the house, with the sheets tucked in and clothes put away. There’s minimal decoration, save for a large feather hanging over his bed. The only clutter in the room is a pile of snowballs in the corner of the room. 

 

“Iwa-chan, it’s cold enough outside. Why do you need to have snowballs in yo-”

 

Oikawa stops when he looks closer at the snowballs and realizes that there are colorful flowers frozen inside them. From the size of the pile, it looks like every single one he’s ever given, from white violets to larkspur to hydrangea, is still there. He crouches down and, after a brief examination, all of them look healthy, just as he had given them. He looks back to see Iwaizumi blushing again, looking to the side.

 

“I couldn’t throw away a single one. Each one had an important memory of us.”

 

Oikawa doesn’t know what to say. Suddenly, Iwaizumi’s eyes widen and he goes over to his dresser and opens it. 

 

“You gave me so many flowers and I wanted to give you something too, but snowflakes and icicles would melt as soon as you got them,” he says, finding something and standing up. 

 

“So that’s why I wanted to give you this.”

 

Oikawa looks down at Iwaizumi’s hands to see a necklace made with a white feather, connected by twine on each end. This feather is much smaller than, but looks just like, the feather hanging up on Iwaizumi’s wall.

 

“I got this when the snowy owls were molting. The one on my wall is the one from my first molt and this one is the most recent molt. I know it’s not the same as choosing a flower and bringing it every day but-”

 

“Shut up. Please. Stop talking. This is amazing. I love it.”

 

Oikawa takes the necklace, puts it on, and it fits perfectly.

 

“...You really like it?”

 

Oikawa chooses to answer that by giving Iwaizumi a huge hug. He rests his head on Iwa-chan’s shoulder as he feels his arms wrap around his back comfortably. They stay like that for a while, silently sharing their presence. Iwaizumi pulls back a little to look Oikawa in the eyes. Oikawa doesn’t notice them drifting towards each other until he can feel Iwaizumi’s breath. 

 

The next thing he feels is the soft skin of Iwaizumi's lips against his own. His eyes flutter shut and Iwaizumi's arms wrap even tighter around his back and his hands slide up to card through his spiky hair and all he can think is  _ This is it I never want to leave this I'd rather freeze than go back. _

 

It must have only been a few minutes but Oikawa feels like it's been hours since they first kissed. He takes a deep breath and kisses Iwaizumi again. He kisses like he does everything: strong, with purpose, but still gentle underneath it all. 

 

And suddenly, Iwaizumi pulls back. Oikawa follows him, lips still gravitating towards his, but a hand on his chest pushes him back. 

 

“Oikawa, I think your jacket isn’t warm anymore. We need to get you back.”

 

“No, no, I feel fine, my wings are fine, I promise-”

 

But Iwaizumi pulls out of the hug and just holds Oikawa’s hands. “I just don’t want you getting hurt because I was being selfish.”

 

Oikawa just looks down at the floor, trying to blink away the tears in his eyes.

 

_ I’m the one being selfish. I know something’s wrong with the jacket, the leftover heating packs must be running out of power. My wings are fine for now, but I don’t know how well the jacket alone is going to protect them.  _

 

“I just wish it didn’t have to be like this.”

 

He’s immediately scooped up into another hug and he clings to Iwaizumi’s back. His voice is tight as he says, “You think this is easy for me? I wish you could stay here, but you’re a Garden talent. You don’t belong in Winter. Not all the time. But look,” he says, running his hands over his back, “you can come over whenever you want with this jacket.”

 

“And I’ll figure out some way to keep you cold enough and then I’ll show you butterflies and rainbows and my garden and the Pixie Dust Tree and everything in the Warm Seasons.”

 

Iwaizumi looks him in the eyes. “We’re completely different people and we have our different lives.”

 

Oikawa looks back at him and smiles a little. “But we’ll find a way to be together.”

 

Iwaizumi nods, and then he kisses him again and Oikawa feels like he’s melting. When Iwaizumi pulls away again, he doesn’t fight it. He can always come back again. 

 

And then he’s lifted into Iwaizumi’s arms again and he laughs as he’s carried out of the house. 

 

“Come on, I know a fun shortcut we can take back to the Border.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is ambrosia, which means "your love is reciprocated."
> 
> :)


	12. Marigold

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)

“What’s this thing?” 

 

Iwaizumi is pulling a slab of wood from a bush and he places it in front of them. They've walked for about half an hour, hand in hand, taking in as much of each other's presence as they can. They've stopped in front of a hill with trees on one side of them. 

 

“This is a sled, and we're gonna sled back to Fall. This hill will get us get most of the way through the forest down to the river.” 

 

Oikawa eyes the sled suspiciously and Iwaizumi laughs. “If you can handle a weasel ride, you'll be fine on a sled. Besides, I'll be behind you the entire time.” 

 

Oikawa nods and sits on the sled. Iwaizumi stands behind him, and in a few seconds they're sliding down the hill and Iwaizumi jumps onto the sled behind him. They're both whooping and hollering as the wind whips in their faces. Iwaizumi switches to flying behind the sled and pushing it forward. He's laughing and Iwaizumi has to focus on making sure they don't run into the valley next to them. 

 

In all the fun they're having, they don't notice a group of fairies flying ahead of them. 

 

The Fast Flying talents face the valley, hands moving back and forth, creating stronger gales than any fairy in the Warm Seasons had ever experienced. 

 

By the time Iwaizumi notices them, they're already caught in their intensive wind practice. 

 

Oikawa’s laughs turn to screams as he tries to hold on to the sled. Iwaizumi holds on to them as they are tossed around in the wind. The Fast Flying talents notice them and call for a complete halt.

 

But not before one of the fairies creates a giant burst of wind headed straight for them. 

 

When it hits, the sled goes flying into the air, with Oikawa attached to it. Iwaizumi's grip on Oikawa’s back slips, and the jacket rips as he continues to fall into the valley. 

 

* * *

 

Although his wings are being exposed to the bitter cold, the jacket ripping means that he can fly now.

 

Minimally. He hasn't put on any Pixie Dust since this morning. 

 

Oikawa continues to fall, scrambling to grab onto anything. He manages to get one hand around a dead branch stuck in the crevices of the rock. He hangs there, suddenly afraid of heights like no fairy should ever be. 

 

He now realizes how warm the jacket kept his wings, because without it, it feels like the cold is slowly sucking the life out of them. Trying to flap them in the cold of the valley only made the problem worse. A sharp pain runs through them, and Oikawa grits his teeth as it passes. He tries to breathe some life into the branch, and it works a little. It grows sturdier and he makes sure the wood wraps around his hand to keep it there.

 

_ Even if I could reach the Pixie Dust in my belt pouch, I'm not sure I could fly like this.  _

 

He's reminded of that fact with another bout of pain shooting through his wings. This time, he can't suppress the groan through his teeth. 

 

_ How long am I going to have to stay like this?  _

 

“-awa! Oikawa! Tooru! Please, answer me!”

 

“Iwa-chan! Iwa-chan, I'm over here!”

 

Within seconds, Iwaizumi comes into view and he speeds over to him, hugging him tightly, murmuring, “I've got you, I've got you, you're safe, I'm so sorry.”

 

When he knows that Iwaizumi has a good grip on him, Oikawa releases his hands from the branch and clings to Iwaizumi’s shoulders.

 

“My...my wings hurt. And the jacket is all ripped up. I need to get back to Fall right now.”

 

Iwaizumi's eyes are wide and he nods, flying as fast as he can out of the valley. 

 

“Wait, wait, don't just throw me back into Fall. If the temperature change is too sudden, then my wings could shatter.”

 

Those eyes should never be so full of fear and guilt, Oikawa thinks. 

 

“Can you move your wings down? If they're against your body, they'll start warming up from your body heat.”

 

Oikawa nods, but getting his wings down isn't as easy as it should be. His eyes squeeze shut and a pained cry escapes his mouth. Iwaizumi immediately goes to hold him in a princess carry, just as he did carrying him to his house. 

 

_ It seems like a lifetime ago that we were just having fun here.  _

 

Iwaizumi presses kisses and “You're so brave, I love you”s and “I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry”s into his hair as he flies them back to Fall. Oikawa curls up in his arms, trying not to focus on the pain and the relieving yet terrifying numbness spreading through his wings. He buries his face in the crook of Iwaizumi's neck, breathing in Iwaizumi's pine and fir scent. 

 

“What are you doing? Why is he here?”

 

“What were you thinking? You know this falls in the area of ‘being dumb.’”

 

Oikawa opens his eyes to see Matsukawa and Watari flying on each side of Iwaizumi.

 

“What are you guys doing here?”

 

Watari looks over to him. “We were going to meet you later at the border to make sure that you and Iwaizumi didn't stay until dark again.”

 

Matsukawa nods. “But a few minutes ago, we ran into Kindaichi who told us about Iwaizumi's new friend named Oikawa who couldn't fly.”

 

“Guys, please, roast me after my boyfriend is safe.”

 

The two fairies raise their eyebrows at that but choose to say nothing.

 

“Ah, Iwa-chan, you would let yourself get roasted for me? You're so romantic!” Even though he's teasing playfully, it sounds different as he feels weaker and weaker. He can see the Iwaizumi's wince, so he puts one hand on his face. 

 

“Hey, look, this isn't your fault, alright? I was the one who chose to come here, even though I knew the risks.”

 

Iwaizumi just presses him closer to his body. Oikawa looks ahead and he can see the telltale orange and red of the Autumn Woods. He has no idea what kind of fate awaits him there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> um
> 
> oops?
> 
> Today's flower is marigold, which stands for "suffering" or "sadness."


	13. Chaste Tree

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Before you read this next chapter, please check out this cute [fanart](http://heeheelala.deviantart.com/art/i-got-so-angry-at-a-fanfic-update-that-i-drew-fana-665387282?ga_submit_new=10%3A1487903986) by the lovely Pinktoria! Thank you so much!
> 
> Also fun fact: the second half of this chapter and the first half of the next chapter have been written for well over a year. Since December of 2015 to be exact. A big part of my writers block was trying to connect where I originally stopped to this part. I felt so relieved when I finally connected it all together! 
> 
> Third, I will be including links to pictures of each chapter's flower at the end! I will go back and add the links to the previous chapters in the next few days.

The setting sun filters in through Kenma’s workshop window, and it reflects off his tools. His workspace becomes more and more empty as he cleans up for the day. He puts the scissors back into their drawer and sighs.

 

“I know you’re there, Kuro.”

 

He turns around to see Kuroo leaning against the doorway. He waves with a smile.

 

“I expected you to already be outside and tinkering with your slide game, but you seem to be busy.”

 

“I just have a heavier workload than usual. It’s nothing special.”

 

Kuroo’s smirk widens. “You’ve had heavier workloads before, but you never stayed late for them. I think you’ve finally taken an interest in one of the projects.”

 

“I have not.”

 

“Have too.”

 

“Have not.”

 

“Have too.”

 

“Have not.”

 

“...Have too.”

 

“Have _not_.”

 

Kuroo continues to smirk as he looks around, and his eyes stop on the mannequin in the corner of the room.

 

“I didn’t know you were designing clothes. That seems like the opposite of what you’d do.”

 

“...It was a special request.”

 

Kuroo scans the room some more, then goes to pick up a fallen sunflower seed.

 

“What are you doing, making gowns for the Light talents?”

 

Kenma sighs. He knows that Kuroo won’t back down until he’s had some kind of answer. “It’s a heating jacket.”

 

Kuroo squints in thought. “Who asked you to do that? It’s never cold enough in Pixie Hollow to need any kind of artificial heat. Unless it was for one of the animals?”

 

Kenma opens his mouth to reply, but then remembers that Oikawa specifically asked him not to tell Kuroo.

 

“I mean the only place a fairy would need heat that strong is if they were going to the Winter Woods-”

 

And Kuroo freezes. He slowly turns to look at Kenma.

 

“Please tell me Oikawa didn’t ask you to do this project.”

 

There’s no use lying to Kuroo. He’s known him since the day Kenma arrived in Pixie Hollow.

 

“Just don’t tell anyone else about this. He doesn’t want it getting to the Garden Talents, because he wants to surprise them.”

 

“...Why don’t I believe that,” Kuroo mutters, starting to fly out of the workshop. “Do you know where he is?”

 

“We started out in the Autumn Woods this morning, but he still hasn’t checked back in with me.”

 

Kuroo’s eyes widen and he nods, yelling a quick “Thanks Kenma, I’ll explain later!” as he sprints out of the room.

 

Kenma blinks as Kuroo exits. He hadn’t expected him to be that upset about it. He sighs and goes back to putting away his tools. He’ll ask about it later. Just as Kenma can’t hide anything from Kuroo, Kuroo can’t hide anything from Kenma. He’ll find out eventually.

 

Kenma looks out the window.

 

_The day is almost over, and he still hasn’t come back. I hope Oikawa is alright._

 

* * *

 

Suga feels refreshed after a day of stringing spider webs with dewdrops. He’s flying back to the dining hall to get dinner when he passes by Bokuto and Akaashi.

 

“Hey Akaashi, Bokuto,” he says, waving to them.

 

“Oh, Suga! How ya doin?”

 

Akaashi nods back at him. “How was your day, Suga?”

 

“Great, I was with the spiders today. What about you guys?”

 

Bokuto launches into rambling about his day, and Suga giggles at the fond expression on Akaashi's face.

 

“And we helped Kenma and Oikawa with their project and-”

 

“ _Bokuto-san.”_ Akaashi's fond expression quickly turns to one of exasperation. Bokuto claps his hands over his mouth, squeaking out a muffled “I'm sorry!”

 

“What project?”

 

Before either of them can answer, Kuroo flies past them. Realizing who he passed, he flies back, out of breath.

 

“Bokuto, Akaashi, have either of you seen Oikawa since this morning?”

 

They look at each other. “No, we haven't.”

 

“Kenma hasn't either. Oikawa apparently asked him to make a heated jacket today and no one has seen him since they tested it this morning.”

 

“So Kenma was the one who told you? See Akaashi, I wasn’t the one who told Kuroo. I can totally keep a secret,” Bokuto boasts, chest puffed out.

 

Suga ignores Bokuto and Akaashi’s bickering. He feels his stomach dropping to the ground far below his feet. He knows exactly where Kuroo is going with this. Akaashi turns his attention away from Bokuto for a second and notices Kuroo and Suga’s somber expressions.

 

“Oikawa only asked us to keep it a secret because he wanted to surprise the other Garden talents with the jacket when we went to the Mainland for Fall. He never meant to hurt you by deceiving you.”

 

“While I’m sure he would make those jackets for the other Garden talents, he definitely isn’t saving them for the Mainland trip,” Kuroo says, shaking his head.

 

Bokuto and Akaashi look like they have more questions, but Suga waves them over, flying towards to the Autumn Woods. “Come on, we’ll explain along the way. We have to get there quickly.”

 

_Please, Oikawa, don’t do what I think you’ve done. Please, just be safe._

 

* * *

 

Oikawa is still shaking when Iwaizumi drops him gently at the end of the wood bridge on the Warm side. He quickly flies back to the edge of the Border, so only his wings are kept chilled in the snowfall.

 

_I don’t want to leave him alone right now, but it’ll be even worse if my wings start breaking too._

 

Just as he thinks this, some Warm fairies appear, flying up the path and worriedly talking in hushed tones. They stop in their tracks as soon as they see the scene before them and then immediately fly faster to their Garden fairy friend.

 

Oikawa is just trying to keep his breathing steady to keep his mind off the deep ache in his wings. There’s hands on his shoulder and he looks up to see Suga and Kuroo worriedly looking at him, silently asking what happened. Oikawa is too scared and in pain to do anything but shake his head.

 

“You’re freezing all over,” Suga whispers, reaching down to hold his hand. There’s twin gasps from Bokuto and Akaashi.

 

“Your wings…” This is the quietest Oikawa has ever heard Bokuto, and that makes another stab of panic shoot through his chest as he slowly turns his head.

 

Both his wings are blue and rigid, but what’s worse is that there are thin cracks running through his right wing.

 

“We need to get you to a Healing talent, _now_ ,” Kuroo says as he starts pulling him up by the arm. The sudden movement jolts his wings and a pained cry is pulled from Oikawa’s lips and all the fairies stop moving.

 

Akaashi gently pushes Oikawa to sit back down, saying, “I really don’t think he can be moved. Suga, you’re the fastest flier out of all of us. Go get a Healing talent. We’ll stay here with Oikawa.”

 

The Water talent looks like he wants to stay, but gives Oikawa’s shoulder a squeeze before flying off as fast as he can.

 

Akaashi turns to Bokuto, “We need to warm him up. _Gently._ Can you summon some light for us?” Bokuto nods, scrunching his eyes up and summoning a ball of light.

 

“If we need some more warmth, I can go get some fireflies. There should be some around here,” the Animal talent says, standing up.

 

Akaashi nods, “That would be helpful, thank you.”

 

Kuroo flies off, and Bokuto shines his light with Akaashi guiding him and applying the extra pixie dust from the pouch to his wings in hopes of helping him heal faster. Through all this, Iwaizumi silently watches, hands clenched into fists, with Matsukawa and Watari hovering next to him. When Oikawa finally looks up and flashes him a quick smile, he can’t help but clench his jaw and fists tighter.

 

_This wouldn’t have happened if we were more careful. If_ I _was more careful._

 

Kuroo arrives back fairly quickly with three fireflies. At his instruction, one goes to cuddle in Oikawa’s arms, and the others help Bokuto warm Oikawa’s wings.

 

After a while, he can hear Oikawa shakily say, “I’m feeling warmer, but my wings are feeling numb.”

 

Bokuto and Akaashi exchange a worried glance over him, and at that moment, Suga flies in, almost pulling along a healing fairy, Kiyoko, one of the calmest Healing talents in all of Pixie Hollow. She gently touches his wings and brings out her magnifying glass to inspect them further, then says, “Using firefly light and pixie dust to warm you up is exactly what we would have done back at the clinic, so this was good thinking. I think you’re warmed up enough now and the left wing looks fine to me.”

 

Bokuto lets go of his light and everyone visibly relaxes, but tenses back up when she speaks again.

 

“But I don’t know what to do about these cracks on the right wing. Nor does any healing talent.”

 

A single phrase swirls in the minds of all the fairies.

 

_There is no cure for a broken wing._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is the [chaste tree flower](https://maxpull-gdvuch3veo.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/vitex-chaste-tree.jpg), which means, "coldness."
> 
> ...see you next week!


	14. Yarrow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey again everyone! I think this chapter will be a little more enjoyable than the past few chapters ;)

Oikawa feels panic rising in his throat and he locks eyes with Iwaizumi. His vision starts blurring and he shudders out, “Iwa-chan…”

 

Iwaizumi disregards Matsukawa and Watari’s attempts to hold him back as he runs to kneel in front of Oikawa. The firefly coos and escapes his arms to make room for Iwaizumi’s fingers interlocking in his own and their foreheads gently touching. 

 

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, this wouldn’t have happened if I was more careful-”

 

“It’s not your fault, Iwa-”

 

“Yes it is! You were in my territory, I should have been watching out for you.”

 

Oikawa opens his mouth to retort, but closes it in a hiss as a sudden jolt of pain breaks through the numbness in his wings. Everyone has stepped back to give him his space and Oikawa blanches when he looks back to see the tip of his wing barely holding onto the rest of the appendage. 

 

_ Is the rest of my wing going to slowly fall apart? _

 

Iwaizumi touches his face, their hands still firmly clasped together. “Hey look at me, you’re going to be fine, sweetpea, just breathe with me, yeah?” He gently guides Oikawa’s hand to touch his chest, trying to ease his panic.

 

“Breathe in with me...now out...keep doing that, I love you, Tooru, you’re so strong, I love you so much.”

 

Oikawa and Iwaizumi are so lost in each other that they don’t notice the fairies around them gasping. Even Matsukawa and Watari have stepped forward at the sight.

 

Iwaizumi’s wings are glowing, something softly pale pink collecting on them. 

 

The two sitting fairies then join everyone in looking at the Winter fairy’s wings in wonder. 

 

_ What does it mean? _

 

Akaashi flutters up to Iwaizumi, squinting at his wings, “I can’t believe it. I thought that was just stuff written in the mythology books…” Everyone looks at him to elaborate.

 

“Rose gold pixie dust. It’s only made in response to a genuine need and through extremely powerful love. Pixie dust always needs some emotion and belief to properly work. But it seems like Iwaizumi’s feelings ended up concentrated in the pixie dust already on his wings.

 

“It’s also said to have amazing healing powers.”

 

Iwaizumi and Oikawa look at each other with wide eyes. The Winter fairy stands up slowly, wings still glowing, and stands with his back to Oikawa’s. Gently, careful not to shake the injured wing too much, he closes his two wings onto Oikawa’s right wing, still holding Oikawa’s left hand. When he opens his wings again and turns around, the rose gold pixie dust has adhered to Oikawa’s wing. 

 

At first, nothing happens. Then Oikawa gasps as his wing starts to tingle and the pixie dust starts to glow brighter. When the light fades, so have the cracks on Oikawa’s wing. All that is left of the incident is the wing tip that has fallen off. 

 

Oikawa seems to pay it no mind as he experimentally flutters his wings and lifts off the ground, slowly flittering in a circle as a giant smile grows on his face. He grabs Iwaizumi into a tight hug as everyone cheers and breathes sighs of relief around him. Iwaizumi lets out a shuddery breath and buries his face into the crook of Oikawa’s neck. Eventually he pulls away to look the Garden fairy in the eyes. 

 

“You’ve been in the cold for too long, especially for a Garden talent. Go home and rest.”

 

“But-”

 

“Please. I don’t want you hurting even more.”

 

Oikawa sighs, “OK. But meet me here tomorrow afternoon?”

 

Iwaizumi nods. He’s reluctant to drop his arms, but he knows that Oikawa won’t be the first one to do it. The Winter fairy nuzzles Oikawa one last time before stepping back. 

 

Oikawa waves, a little sadly, at him and flutters his wings to fly away, a little shakily. Suga and Kuroo fly on either side of him as the Warm fairies retreat from the cold. Iwaizumi waits until he can’t see them anymore before he lets his strong face fall and his fists clench. Matsukawa goes to rest a hand on Iwaizumi’s shoulder, but he turns on his heel and flies back into Winter as fast as he can. Matsukawa and Watari look at each other, back at the Warm Seasons, then go to follow their friend. 

 

* * *

 

Oikawa barely makes it to the edge of the Autumn Woods before his wings begin to slow down. He stands with his hands on his knees, breathing heavily at the exertion. Kiyoko places a hand on his shoulder.

 

“Just stay here, I've already called for a mouse cart to come here.” 

 

Oikawa nods, still feeling out of breath. 

 

“I want to take you back to the hospital to check everything out. We'll probably keep you there for the night so we can make sure there aren't any complications.” 

 

He says nothing in response to that but Suga tells him, “It's alright. I'll water your garden for you. You just focus on getting your energy back.” 

 

The mouse cart comes squeaking up the path, and Oikawa feels himself lifted into it. He closes his eyes and falls asleep for the rest of the ride to the healing ward.

 

When he comes to, he's tucked into a leaf bed on his side. He feels warm light shining on his wings and he wonders if it's already morning. He tries to roll over, but an arm holds him in place. 

 

“Just hold still a little longer Oikawa,” a somewhat high pitched voice says. He opens his eyes to see a small, blonde fairy focused on whatever is behind him. Looking around, he's in the healing ward and it's already dark. In a few moments, the light goes away and the blonde fairy's hands lift from his shoulder. He sits up in his bed and Suga, Kuroo, and Makki are sitting in front of him. They breathe a sigh of relief when he moves normally. 

 

“Here you go,” Kiyoko says, handing him a cup of hot tea. “Your wings look perfectly fine now, but your body temperature was still low. You'll be fine as long as you keep warm tonight. You also had bruising on the sides of your body, but those should heal quickly.” 

 

Oikawa nods and thanks her. She waves to the blonde fairy. “Come on, Yachi, let's let them have some time alone.” 

 

Yachi waves as they exit the room and close the curtain behind them. The fairies are left with a tense silence in the room. Hanamaki is the first one to break it. 

 

“So what happened out there? All we know is that you left in the morning and you came back with your wing cracked up.”

 

In between sips of tea, Oikawa tells them all about the Winter Woods- riding a weasel, meeting the baby penguin, going to Iwaizumi’s house-

 

“Oooooooo, and what did you do at his house? Did you kiss?” Makki asks, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. 

 

Unluckily for him, Makki is sitting the closest to Oikawa, so he gets a swat on the shoulder, but the blush on his cheeks tells them everything. 

 

Then Oikawa tells them about the sled ride, and being thrown into the valley. The lighter mood in the room is sucked out and Oikawa ends with being placed back in the Autumn Woods. Everyone is silent after that until Suga pipes up.

 

“Oikawa, you knew this would happen. You read the story of Karasuno and Nekoma. And you still went anyways?”

 

“We were fine until the jacket tore!”

 

“But you said that the heat was fading from the jacket after a few hours, and some of the heating pods had already fallen out. What would happen tried to stay even longer?” Kuroo adds.

 

“All I would need to do is keep extra heating pods.”

 

“How would you keep them warm? And what would happen when you ran out of those?”

 

“Plus, you can't fly with the jacket on. What if you get into a dangerous situation or the jacket tears again?” Hanamaki says.

 

“We'd find a way out because we love each other! His pixie dust turned rose gold because we love each other! Why can't anyone see that?”

 

The three other fairies are wide eyed and silent during Oikawa’s outburst. He can feel the tears burning at the edges of his eyes.  Kuroo sighs and stands up.

 

“It's been a long day, and I think we're all tired. We’ll let you sleep now, Oikawa.”

 

Suga and Makki nod and stand up, but before they can leave, Suga rushes over and hugs Oikawa tightly. Soon he feels Makki’s arms around his right side and Kuroo join their group hug on his left. 

 

“We just want you to be safe, Oikawa,” Suga says, voice heavy with emotion. 

 

Oikawa grabs onto Suga and lets out a shuddery breath.

 

_ I know they care about me. They’ve just been worried about me. But they just don’t get it. _

 

They pull away and fly out of the room, Makki turning around and saying a quick, “Sleep well, we’ll see you in the morning.”

 

The room is quiet after that. Oikawa tells the firefly that he’s ready to sleep and it nods and flies out. He tries to get comfortable on the somewhat itchy, stiff leaf beds. He tosses and turns for a while, but manages to fall asleep, fingers clutched around the necklace Iwaizumi gave him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is [yarrow](), which stands for "healing"
> 
> Thank you all for your wonderful comments! I love hearing from you!


	15. Asphodel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I hope you're all doing well this fine Wednesday! We're just starting to tie up some loose ends from the last chapter here. Hope you enjoy!

Matsukawa and Watari are huddled around Matsukawa’s dining table, trying to figure out how to help Iwaizumi. He had flown off before them, and the two of them had taken that as a sign that he wanted to be left alone for a while. Their meeting is interrupted by a soft knocking at the door. 

 

When he opens it, Matsukawa sees a small bunny, shaking and squeaking at him rapidly. His eyes widen and he nods, waves for Watari to come, and then flies off towards Iwaizumi’s house. 

 

The area around Iwaizumi’s house is usually one of the most peaceful places in all of Pixie Hollow, but today, it is filled with loud crashing and intermittent shouts. Many of the animals that live there have run off in fear, including the bunny messenger who came to Matsukawa for help. 

 

“Alright, you go stay with your friends, and we’ll go see what’s going on.”

 

The trembling bunny hops away, and Matsukawa and Watari follow the sounds. They’re led to Iwaizumi in a clearing, throwing tightly packed snowballs, branches, and rocks at a tree. Watari goes from behind, so as not to be in the line of fire, and touches Iwaizumi gently on the shoulder. He whirls around, snarl set of his face, which immediately drops when he sees who’s there. 

 

“What are you doing?” Matsukawa asks, flying up to him. “You’re scaring all the animals in a five meter radius.”

 

Iwaizumi looks a lot guiltier after he hears that, but still says nothing. Matsukawa and Watari trade worried glances before silently leading him back up to his home. Iwaizumi gives no resistance, and soon he's on his couch in his living room, his friends on either side of him.

 

“OK, you gotta talk to us. It's not going to help if you keep everything bottled up,” Watari says, putting one hand on his arm. 

 

“...I feel terrible.”

 

They nod silently, encouraging him to elaborate. 

 

“I let him get hurt and his wings broke because I wasn't more careful and I decided a sled ride was much better than just walking him back and he just looked so scared the entire time! I let that happen to him!” 

 

“But you fixed it,” Matsukawa reminds him, “He’s perfectly fine now.”

 

“It doesn't matter. It still happened. He's a Garden fairy and he was never meant to be here or with me.”

 

“You made rose gold pixie dust because of him, of course you’re supposed to be together!”

 

Iwaizumi shakes his head. “No, we aren’t. I’m not going back to the border. Not tomorrow. Not ever.”

 

Matsukawa and Watari are speechless. Iwaizumi glances back at them before walking into his room. The two fairies hurry to follow him. The room is unchanged except for one corner that, for the past few months, has been occupied by a pile of frozen spheres. Now that corner is empty.

 

Watari takes a step forward. “What are you doing? Where did you put all the flowers?”

 

Iwaizumi glances out the open window, then goes back to staring at the wall. 

 

“Why are you doing this to yourself, Iwaizumi?” Matsukawa growls. 

 

“I don’t want to!” he yells, whirling around to look at them. His eyes are full of tears that he’s desperately trying to hold back. “I don’t want to leave him, but this is the only way to make sure neither of us get hurt again!”

 

The fairies look at each other silently as Iwaizumi’s tears spill over onto his cheeks. He wipes his hands roughly across his face. Watari turns around and flies right out of the room. Matsukawa steps up to Iwaizumi, grabs his shoulders and says, “Think hard about what you’re doing.”

 

He then flies out, following Watari. Iwaizumi’s wings are folded against his back and he sits down on the bed. He continues to cry, the events of the day catching up to him. He lies down and grabs one of his pillows, but he wishes had something, someone warmer with him. Eventually, he ends up falling asleep, but he tosses and turns for the rest of the night. 

 

* * *

 

Oikawa wakes up to a bright light on his face and someone shaking his shoulder. 

 

“Are you alright, Oikawa?”

 

He opens his eyes to see Yachi in front of him and the way-past-sunrise light filtering through the window. 

 

“You were tossing around in your sleep,” she says, concern filling her eyes.

 

“I’m fine, thank you for asking,” Oikawa mumbles as he sits up. 

 

“Kiyoko asked me to do a quick check up on you before you leave,” Yachi says, gathering her equipment. Oikawa is silent for most of the examination, answering her questions with as few words as possible. Yachi puts down the magnifying glass after inspecting his wings, then sits down next to him.

 

“Do you want to talk about it? I don’t know much about what happened, but you look like you need someone to talk to. A-ah, but I’m not trying to pry! I’m so sorry, that must have sounded so rude, oh no-”

 

Oikawa laughs a little, the first time after coming back from the Winter Woods. “Thank you, Yachi, that would be nice.”

 

She lets out a big sigh of relief, then looks at him with interest. He tells her all about Iwaizumi and the wonderful things he saw in the Winter Woods, from snowflakes to penguins to frost. Yachi nods intently, completely focused on him. 

 

“Ah, so every flower you gave him was still alive in the frost?”

 

“Yeah, they were. It was amazing, some of those have been there for months.”

 

“That’s so cool! So frosting things keeps them alive in the cold. Ah, if I could frost things, I would frost those berries from the Harvest Festival so I could have them whenever I wanted.”

 

_ Frosting things keeps them alive in the cold. Even things from the Warm Seasons.  _

 

Oikawa jumps out of the bed, startling Yachi in the process.

 

“Thank you so much for your help Yachi, I’m feeling much better now!” he yells as he flies out of the room. Yachi waves to him, bemused. 

 

He feels a little shaky as he flies, but it starts evening out as he gets used to making his wings work again after over a day of not using them. Oikawa makes a trip back home to check on his Garden (which has, in fact been watered by Suga) and he knows he has a few hours before Iwaizumi will be at the border. As he tends to them, he tells them all about his adventures in the Winter Woods and how he can’t wait to see Iwaizumi and tell him about the idea Yachi gave him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is [asphodel](http://www.flowersinisrael.com/Flowgallery/Asphodelus_aestivus_flower3.jpg), which means "regret."
> 
> Did you think the angst was over? lol :)
> 
> Also originally, I had Yachi as the queen of Pixie Hollow, but that didn't really let me take the story where I wanted it to go, and I was also struggling with characterization. While she is not queen here, I still wanted her to have an important role. In fact, I think her role is more important here than it originally was. Later on, we'll see the stories of the rulers of Pixie Hollow!


	16. Love-in-a-mist

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The angst train is making its rounds again and this chapter is the next station

Oikawa has a bunch of multicolored zinnia in his hands as he flies down the familiar path through the Autumn Woods. He hums and brushes his fingers gently over them. The cool air ruffles his hair and he takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. When he opens his eyes, he can see the white expanse of the Winter Woods in front of him. There’s no one at the bridge.

 

_ I guess I’m just early then.  _

 

He lands at the edge of the snow and sits down on the wood bridge and sits down, flowers in his lap. The snow hasn’t changed any since the day before, but he looks at it with apprehension. But if he wants to go on with his plan, he has to be alright with touching the cold of Winter. 

 

His fingers shake as he reaches out to the snow on the ground. They inch closer to the ground and he scrunches up his eyes as he drops his hand on the snow. 

 

_ It feels the same. Cold, but not too unpleasant.  _

 

Oikawa’s fingers wiggle around and a smile starts forming on his lips as the powdery substance is flung off of them. He continues to play with the snow until he sees blue leaf boots in front of him. He jumps up immediately, a grin stretching across his face involuntarily. 

 

“Iwa-chan! I’m so excited to see-”

 

Then he notices that the fairy is considerably lacking in both the height and hair department. 

 

“Ah, Watari, it’s good to see you,” he says, definitely a little less excited now. Watari, similarly, looks subdued. He opens his mouth to speak, but Oikawa interrupts him.

 

“I was actually looking for you, Watari. Could I watch you frost these flowers?” 

 

Watari’s eyes soften and he asks, “There’s something I need to tell you-”

 

“Please, it’ll be really quick, right?”

 

Watari sighs, nods, and takes the flowers. His hands circle the zinnia, leaving trails of frost that encase the bouquet. Oikawa’s eyes widen at how effortless it seems. 

 

“It’s still alive in there, even though it’s in the cold. How did you do it?”

 

Watari smiles down at the frosted flowers. “Frost traps the warm air inside and keeps out the cold, like a blanket.”

 

Oikawa smiles at that.  _ I knew it had to be something like that.  _

 

“Watari, there’s something else I need you to do.” 

 

He sticks his hand over the border to Watari. 

 

“I want you to frost my hand.”

 

Watari looks down at the proffered limb with wide eyes.

 

“Why? What are you trying to do?”

 

Oikawa takes a deep breath. “If frost can protect my flowers, it should be able to protect me too. Please, just try for me.”

 

Watari’s hands close over his, and he looks incredibly worried as his eyes fix on Oikawa’s hand. Then, an odd feeling goes through his hand as the frost covers it. But in a few seconds, all he feels is a slight chill, nothing more than the breeze through the Autumn Woods. He shakes and waves his hand around, but the frost stays in place. 

 

“Look, Watari, my hand is fine! Ah, this is great! I can’t wait to show Iwa-chan-”

 

“Oikawa, Iwaizumi isn’t coming.”

 

He stops in his tracks.

 

“What?”

 

Watari is looking down and away. “He was so upset after you left yesterday. He felt guilty that you got hurt because you came to the Winter Woods. He threw out all the flowers and said that he wouldn’t come back.”

 

Oikawa’s mood plummets. There’s an odd mix of hurt and anger mixing in his chest and he doesn’t know whether he wants to scream or cry or do both. 

 

_ He's giving up on us.  _

 

“It's not that he doesn't love you, because he does! He just thinks he's doing what's best for everyone, even if it's hurting both of you in the process.” 

 

_ He's giving up on  _ me _. _

 

Oikawa’s eyes are burning, so he whirls around, back to Watari. His throat feels closed up, so it's hard to force out his next words.

 

“Thank you for telling me, Watari. At least you could be bothered to speak to me in person. Please tell Iwaizumi that I won't wait for him anymore.” 

 

He begins walking away, but Watari calls out to him. 

 

“Wait, why did you want me to frost your hands?” 

 

Oikawa looks back at Watari, at the Winter Woods, and confesses, “I wanted you to frost my wings next. If frost could protect my flowers and my hands, then it would be able to protect my wings too, and I wouldn't have to rely on anything to get around the Winter Woods. 

 

“But I guess it doesn't matter now.”

 

And with that, Oikawa flies off into the Autumn Woods. Watari watches him go, then looks down at the frozen flowers in his hands. He lets out a frustrated sigh at how dumb these two fairies were being, and he flies back home, cradling the flowers.

 

* * *

 

“Iwaizumi, your owls aren't looking as lively as usual. You aren't flying them through their drills as effectively.”

 

Iwaizumi sighs when Fairy Irihata pulls him aside. He knows he's been off his game, but he doesn't know how to fix it.

 

“This isn't like you. Did something happen?” 

 

Iwaizumi shakes his head. It would be way too much trouble to explain. Plus, if Fairy Irihata knew he took a Warm fairy to Winter and then got him hurt, he would be in serious trouble, especially with Lord Ittetsu. 

 

“Why don't you go help with the weasels for now? I'll get Matsukawa to handle your owls for the day.”

 

He has to take a deep breath to keep from groaning out loud. He nods silently and flies over to the land animals area, trying to push down his disappointment. Matsukawa looks over to him, confused, but Iwaizumi just tells him to go see Fairy Irihata. 

 

The weasels are all playing with their toys, running around and chasing each other. Iwaizumi's eyes soften when he sees how happy they are. He feels a nudge at his knee. 

 

“Hey, Spruce. You wanna play fetch?” he asks, rubbing her head and taking the ball from her mouth. She nods excitedly and scampers away, ready to get it. Iwaizumi laughs at how she squeaks while she runs after he throws it. 

 

They do this for a while, ball flying back and forth, but eventually, Iwaizumi's throws become more half hearted. He remembers how Oikawa eventually warmed up to Spruce and her fast paced rides. 

 

There's another nudge at his knee, and Iwaizumi is snapped out of his memories by a worried looking Spruce, ball still in her mouth. 

 

“Ah, sorry about that,” he apologizes, going to take the ball. But Spruce just drops it on the ground and rubs her head against his arm, chittering softly. She curls up on the ground, clearly expecting Iwaizumi to sit with her. He sighs and joins her, side against her soft fur. 

 

“I’m sorry for being so distracted today. A lot of stuff has happened since yesterday.”

 

Spruce squeaks at him.

 

“No, he’s not here. He actually...Spruce, you can’t tell anyone about this, alright? Oikawa was actually a Warm fairy, and he got hurt while he was here.”

 

More shocked squeaking.

 

“I know, I know, he was fine until we tried to get back. The Winter Woods are too dangerous for him.”

 

A series of squeaks followed by a nose nudge to his head.

 

“I know I was happy, alright? Everyone keeps telling me that like I don’t know it!”

 

Spruce flinches back, and Iwaizumi feels his heart sink.

 

_ Why is this going as far as affecting my own Talent? _

 

“I’m sorry, Spruce, I didn’t mean to yell,” he says, rubbing her head gently. She licks his face, accepting his apology. 

 

“Iwaizumi.” 

 

He turns to see Watari standing behind him. A scowl is set on his normally smiling face. Iwaizumi feels the hair on the back of his neck standing up. 

 

“I saw Oikawa today. He was waiting for you, but you never showed up.” 

 

Iwaizumi opens his mouth to speak, but Watari holds a hand up. 

 

“Just listen to me. Oikawa was trying to find a way to protect his wings without the jacket so he could still fly around. He wanted me to frost his wings, and I think he’s on the right track. He’s still trying for you, but you’ve given up on him. And if you don’t fix this, he’s gonna give up on you.

 

“So fix this,” he says, placing a frozen ball in his arms before flying away.

 

In his arms is another bouquet of flowers: bright, beautiful blooms that he never thought he’d see again. He hears chittering behind him.

 

“You’re right, Spruce, I did mess up.”

 

Another series of squeaks and chitters. 

 

“I think I know how to fix this. Can you help me?”

 

Spruce nods and follows Iwaizumi, who looks more determined than ever. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is [love-in-a-mist](http://hort.uwex.edu/files/2014/11/love-in-the-mist-2.jpg), which stands for "perplexity." Additionally, [mixed zinnia](http://www.edenbrothers.com/store/media/Seeds-Flowers/SFZIN117.jpg) means "Thinking of an absent friend."
> 
> Thank you all for your lovely comments! I really do read and treasure every single one. I'm a little behind on replies right now but I'm making my way through them! Please leave a comment (even if it's just screaming) (especially if it's just screaming) if you liked the chapter!


	17. Purple Hyacinth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! This chapter is a roller coaster so buckle up lol

“Glad to see you're feeling better,” Yahaba greets as Oikawa flies into the berry fields the next morning. Oikawa summons the biggest smile he can in return. He hasn't felt like smiling ever since he came back from the Border yesterday. He went straight back to his house, avoiding eye contact with everyone, and sat in his garden to rant to his flowers. Being surrounded by their energy made him feel a little better, but not enough to want to interact with anyone else for the day. The necklace Iwaizumi gave him was thrown in a far corner of his room in a fit of frustration before he tried to go to sleep. 

 

On the leaf posting, he sees that he's been assigned to the strawberry group today. When he looks over to the strawberry patch, Suga and Makki are already hovering there, chatting lightheartedly. Oikawa sighs, knowing that the two of them will probably notice something is wrong. The horn sounds for them to begin work, and Oikawa scrambles to get to his spot.

 

Suga and Makki draw him into their conversation as they do their methodical work. Oikawa focuses on the strawberries in front of him, barely paying attention to what the other fairies are talking about. As he finishes one, Suga lets the water from his mini rain cloud fall on it, and Oikawa moves on. 

 

“Isn’t that cute, Oikawa?”

 

He lifts his eyes from the small plant in front of him. 

 

“Sorry, what? I wasn't paying attention.”

 

“Daichi brought me some elderberry pie yesterday! He'd just baked some and I was the first person he shared it with.”

 

Oikawa sees the way Suga’s eyes light up and get soft at the same time whenever he talks about his Harvest fairy boyfriend, and something in Oikawa’s chest tightens. 

 

“Wow, that’s great!” he says, smiling as brightly as possible before turning his attention back to the strawberry plants. He misses the look Suga and Makki share above him, but they say nothing about it. 

 

They continue to work for the rest of the morning. Suga and Makki talk, and Oikawa just nods every once in a while. He tries to lose himself in his work, but finds it getting harder and harder to do that. The plants sense his foul mood, and their energy shies away from his. Out of the corner of his eye, he can see the rest of the Garden fairies advancing through the rows. Suga flying ahead to water the other plants, both so they don’t fall totally behind and so he can keep talking to Makki, is the last straw. 

 

He glares down at the plant in front of him, berries barely even red, and jerks his hand towards it. 

 

“Grow. I said, grow, we don’t have all day for this.”

 

If it’s even possible, what little red was on the strawberries fades away to white and the berries shrink. A frustrated growl rips its way from his throat, and he suddenly notices how quiet it is around him. He looks up to see all the fairies in the strawberry patch staring at him. His face heats up, and Oikawa flies off as fast as he can. 

 

* * *

 

“Kuroo, you’re in charge of ferrets today. Pick a couple people to help you.”

 

Fairy Nekomata leaves before seeing Kuroo nod, knowing that he’d get it done. Kuroo waves over Kai and Fukunaga and they head over, talking as they feed and play with the ferrets. 

 

Kai gives the one he’s working with a scratch on his head before glancing over to Kuroo. “So, Kuroo. Do you know what happened with Oikawa?”

 

Fukunaga doesn’t say anything, as usual, but looks over, eyes wider than usual, to show that he too is interested. Kuroo sighs as he fills one of the food bowls. 

 

“How much do you know, and how far has all of this gotten?”

 

“There’s just been a lot of rumors. A few fairies said that he was in the hospital for something related to the cold. Some fairies say that he was sent there on a dare, and others think he got too close to the border and a glacier pulled him over. That was from Taketora though, so I’m pretty sure that’s wrong.”

 

Kuroo laughs and shakes his head. “Yeah, that’s definitely wrong. I’m...not sure how much I can say, but yes, he crossed the border, and he’s fine now.”

 

Kai nods before turning his attention back to the ferret, who was bumping his side, completely uninterested in fairy news and only wanted bellyrubs. “Has King Keishin talked to him about all this?”

 

Kuroo looks over thoughtfully. “You know, I don’t think he has. That’s a little odd. You’d think for something serious like crossing into Winter, King Keishin would have said something about it by now.”

 

Before either fairy can respond, Kuroo feels something shaking his shoulder. He turns to see Fukunaga, one hand on him and another pointing towards a commotion somewhat far away. 

 

“Hold down the fort while I go see what’s going on,” Kuroo says, already flying away.

 

When he gets there, all he sees is a very frantic weasel in the middle of the bunny grounds. It keeps squeaking, bumping into the animals around it. Kuroo flies towards it, arms out in a peaceful gesture.

 

“Hey, hey, shhh, it’s alright, what’s going on? Are you lost?”

 

The weasel chitters at him, and he looks down to see a rolled up blue leaf attached to the twine around its neck. 

 

“OK, I think I can help you.”

 

* * *

 

“His wings were falling apart the day before yesterday, how did he fly this fast?” Suga huffs as he and Makki look for Oikawa. They lost track of him once they got to the giant peony fields, a sea of pink flowers. Flying over the field, the fairies search for any signs of non-plant life. Makki grabs Suga’s arm, looking at the only peony in the field that hasn’t bloomed and is trembling slightly. Upon inspecting the flower more closely, they can hear sniffling from inside it. Makki knocks gently on it, and the flower goes still.

 

“Are you alright in there?” Makki asks, one hand pressed to the petals.

 

“Go away.”

 

“Oikawa, please, just talk to us. We’re worried about you,” Suga says.

 

After a few moments, the front petal folds down to reveal Oikawa sitting in the middle of the flower, eyes rimmed in red. Makki and Suga silently hover next to him, with Makki gently touching his shoulder and Suga taking Oikawa’s hand in his. Oikawa takes a deep breath, then tells them about everything that happened yesterday, from talking with Yachi to meeting Watari at the border. 

 

“I’m sorry, Suga, Makki. You were right. I never should have let this go on as long as it did.”

 

Oikawa feels Suga’s arms around him, and then Makki joins in. 

 

“No, I’m so sorry you had to go through that. I know you really cared about him,” Suga whispers, voice thick with emotion. 

 

“Hey, it’s almost lunchtime. How about we get some food? I’m pretty sure there’s milk bread for dessert today.”

 

“...There’s never milk bread for dessert.”

 

Makki grins, “There is if I ask Moniwa nicely.”

 

“Don’t you mean  _ keep pestering Moniwa until he has no choice but to make some _ ?” Suga asks, unimpressed. 

 

Oikawa laughs, feeling better than he has all day. “Sure, let’s go see what Moniwa is up to.”

 

The three fairies fly from the peony fields, and Oikawa doesn't let go of his friends’ hands. 

 

* * *

 

They're halfway to the dining hall when Oikawa literally runs into Kuroo. With the speed that Kuroo is flying at, they both get knocked down to the ground. Suga and Makki fly down to check on them as Oikawa rubs his throbbing forehead. 

 

Kuroo recovers a little faster, yelling, “Oikawa, I was looking everywhere for you! None of the Garden Talents knew where you went, and I've been flying all over Pixie Hollow all morning.”

 

“What did you need that was so urgent?” Oikawa asks, curious now that his head isn't spinning anymore. 

 

Kuroo stands up and makes some clicking and chittering noises. Within a few seconds, a brown weasel comes running up the path. It pauses when it sees Oikawa, then begins running faster, leaping to tackle Oikawa. He shrieks a little when he hits the ground once more, but gasps at the weasel licking and nuzzling his face. 

 

“Wait...Spruce? What are you doing here?”

 

“She ran into the Animal Training grounds today because she was looking for you,” Kuroo answers, gesturing to her neck. 

 

Spruce nods and points her tiny arms at the rolled up leaf attached to her. Oikawa detaches it and his eyes widen when he sees what it is. 

 

_ To Oikawa, _

 

_ I’m not really good with words. But I think this is worth the effort. I’m sorry. For as many grains of pixie dust in the Pixie Dust Tree, I’m sorry. I thought cutting off ties with you was the only way to keep you safe, but I didn’t think about how that would affect you. I was never angry with you. I was always angry with myself. But even when your wings nearly shattered, you didn’t give up on me. As long as you want to try, so will I, to be the rose gold partner you deserve. _

 

_ Iwaizumi _

 

Oikawa’s hand covers his mouth as he finishes reading the letter. Spruce squeaks at him while nudging her head under his arm. Kuroo laughs, “She says Iwaizumi’s room is filled with crumpled up script leaves because he started over so much.”

 

Oikawa looks over to Suga, who isn't frowning as much as he thought he would be. Suga sees the question in his eyes and laughs lightly.

 

“Honestly? You’re worse off apart than you are together, no matter how dangerous it is. Even if it wasn’t quite the right way to go about it, he was trying to protect you.”

 

Makki nods. “If you talk to each other, then everything should be fine, right? At least now you know what  _ not  _ to do.”

 

Spruce jumps up, runs behind Oikawa and begins pushing him down the road, chittering as they move along. Kuroo’s eyebrows raise and he asks, “Are you sure you want to do that right now?”

 

She squeaks and chirrs, looking very put out, then continues to push Oikawa. The fairies look at Kuroo for a translation and he sighs, “She says Iwaizumi is at the border right now waiting for her to come back and, I quote, ‘You need to fix this right now so my biggest worry can go back to being that I’m not getting enough head scratches.’”

 

Oikawa barks out a laugh at that. Suga looks ready to ask if he’s alright with it, but he just flies alongside Spruce, saying, “It’s better if we can fix this sooner rather than later, right? I’m definitely mad at Iwa-chan, but I know if I avoid him out of spite, it’ll only get worse from here. If we don’t have to fight, why should we?”

 

The other fairies look at each other, surprised. 

 

“That’s the smartest thing you’ve said in a long time, Oikawa,” Makki says as the three fairies fly after their friend. Oikawa looks back to stick his tongue out at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is [purple hyacinth](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/0b/37/e0/0b37e0adacbbdd142905f6397aca5ce5.jpg), which means "I'm sorry."
> 
> This chapter was also writers block #2, because Iwa's letter was really hard to write and balance the romance without making it sound out of character. Please leave a comment if you liked the chapter! I love hearing from you!


	18. Lily of the Valley

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it just me, or is the angst train slowing down?

Iwaizumi reached the Border midmorning, and he hasn’t moved since. He doesn’t notice that Watari and Matsukawa had joined him an hour after he arrived. When Matsukawa gently places a hand on his shoulder, he startles and nearly hits them with his wings as he whips around. Watari smiles, “No one could find you this morning. We looked everywhere and figured this is the only other place you would be.”

 

Iwaizumi nods and turns back around to watch the Warm Seasons again. Their gazes boring into the back of his head signals that they want some explanation and he sighs.

 

“I sent a letter of apology with Spruce. I don’t know when she’s coming back.”

 

No sooner than when he says that, he hears the faint sound of paws scampering up the road. Spruce is bounding up to him, twine and leaf missing from her neck. A few seconds later, four fairies appear behind her. Seeing Oikawa again makes Iwaizumi’s heart feel like it’s been doused in pixie dust. He touches down in front of the bridge and walks up to the snowy barrier, expression neutral. They spend what feels like forever silently staring at each other. Iwaizumi is about to open his mouth to let a tumbling apology spill out, but Oikawa beats him to the punch.

 

“You’re really dumb, you know that Iwa-chan?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Like, a dumb rock.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Say it. Say you’re a dumb rock.”

 

He heaves a sigh before deadpanning, “I’m a dumb rock.”

 

“What’s that? I don’t think I heard you.”

 

“I said it loud and clear!”

 

“Ah, but I think I misheard you and I just wanted to confirm that you knew exactly what you were.”

 

Iwaizumi groans and buries his face in his palms. He then feels two hands tugging them away and forwards. His body is halfway into the Autumn Forest and Oikawa’s arms are wrapped around his shoulders. The tension leaves his body as he brings his arms around Oikawa’s waist. 

 

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I wish I could have come over there myself but I didn’t know how without making another mess of broken wings. I never, ever,  _ ever _ wanted you to get hurt.”

 

“But Iwa-chan, look. Even though I got hurt, it all turned out fine. Pixie dust doesn’t turn rose gold just because you loved me. It’s because I also loved you back. You can’t have one without the other. From now on, let’s be a team.”

 

Oikawa feels Iwaizumi pull away, then pull their foreheads together. 

 

“We’ll be the best team Pixie Hollow has ever seen.”

 

They drift towards each other naturally, and the next thing he knows, Iwaizumi’s lips are on his. 

 

He pulls away, breathless, and suddenly begins laughing.

 

“This is the first time we’ve met here and I didn’t bring you flowers.”

 

Iwaizumi groans. “I’m sorry I threw out all the flowers. I wish I still had them.”

 

Oikawa is about to tell him he can get him all the flowers he wants but Watari pipes up, “Actually, I figured something like would happen. I saved all your flowers and refrosted them. You’re welcome.”

 

“Watacchi! You’re so reliable, especially when Iwa-chan tries to use his tiny brain to think too hard!”

 

Iwaizumi drops his arms and his smile. “I don’t have to hug you, you know.”

 

“Yeah you do.”

 

“...Yeah I do,” he says as he hugs Oikawa again, smile spreading back onto his lips. 

 

“Ah, Watari, speaking of refrosting…”

 

Oikawa pulls away to look at the Frost fairy, who looks back at him doubtfully.

 

“Are you sure? You did just have cold related trauma to your wings. Do you really want to try this out right now?”

 

Oikawa’s confident gaze falters a bit. He remembers the cold wind cutting against his wings and shudders. There’s a cool hand on his wrist, and he looks up to see Iwaizumi’s firm gaze.

 

“You don’t have to do it right now. We can always try later. Besides, we have all the time we-”

 

“Frost my wings first.”

 

Everyone turns to look at Hanamaki, who has stepped up next to Oikawa. 

 

“I’m a Garden fairy too. If it works on me, it should work on everyone. I think your idea to frost wings is right. What’s the difference between some petals and a Garden fairy’s wings anyways?”

 

“Makki, I can’t let you-”

 

“Then let me do it for myself. I’ve been wondering what’s so interesting about the Winter Woods that you keep coming over here.”

 

Oikawa is speechless as Makki walks right past the border and turns to Watari. “Frost me.”

 

He nods, a determined look in his eyes. He lifts his hands and gently runs them over Makki’s wings, trails of frost following his fingers. It’s over in a few seconds, but in that time, Makki’s back goes straight and a shudder runs from his toes to his head. A few experimental flaps and flutters later, he’s laughing and flying around.

 

“My wings feel totally fine! It’s like there’s nothing on them. Although it’s pretty chilly here,” he says, rubbing his hands over his bare arms. The next thing he knows his shoulders are being covered with a jacket. He looks up to see Matsukawa smiling and jacketless.

 

“Welcome to the Winter Woods. For future reference, the weather is always cold and snowy.”

 

Makki smirks back at him. “Thanks, I totally couldn’t tell.” 

 

Iwaizumi looks back at Oikawa, who nods to him. “I can’t let Makki beat me, now can I?” 

 

Gripping Iwaizumi’s hand, he steps over onto snowy land as Watari moves behind him. He only has a moment to flinch at the sudden cold before his mind focuses on the odd sensation of frost covering his wings. It's over before he knows it and he looks back, testing out how mobile they are. As he flies up, so does Iwaizumi, and their laughter mixes as they flutter around each other, hand in hand. When they touch back down, Spruce tackles Oikawa and licks his face. 

 

“Well, the frost looks like it's weasel proof so we should be good here,” Watari laughs. 

 

“Ah, it seems like such a waste for Watari to frost our wings only for us to have to go back a few minutes later. Oh if only we didn't have to go back to those boring strawberry fields, his hard work wouldn't have to be lost,” Hanamaki dramatically moans, practically collapsing on top of a laughing Matsukawa.

 

Watari begins, “Ah it wasn't really that hard to-” but then cuts himself off when he's given a hopeful look from Oikawa and an exaggerated wink from Makki.

 

“On second thought, it took so much out of me to do this. I don't think I'll be able to do anything else today,” he deadpans.

 

Kuroo cackles at Watari’s subpar acting while Suga sighs, unamused.

 

“You two are gonna have so much makeup work to do tomorrow. Fairy Washijou will really let you have it the second he sees you slackers.”

 

“Worth it.”

 

Suga’s unimpressed look melts away to fondness as he says, “Be safe you guys,” and turns to fly away.

 

Kuroo gives a few clicks with his mouth, and Spruce runs up so she can get a head scratch from him. “I think I'll be seeing a lot more of you guys from now on,” he says before he follows Suga. 

 

Oikawa feels fingers lace through his, and he sees Iwaizumi's eyes are full of light and softness. 

 

“Come on, there's a bunch of places that I couldn't show you before without flying, like the owlery.”

 

“Ah, the snowy owls are the best thing in the Winter Woods! We just got a baby one a few months ago…” Matsukawa rambles.

 

The air is filled with their friends’ banter, but Iwaizumi and Oikawa fly in comfortable silence, hand in hand, grateful that they can fly together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is [lily of the valley](http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/lily-of-the-valley.jpg), meaning "return of happiness."
> 
> Originally when I started posting again, this was the last thing I had finished. However, there's still some loose ends I wanted to tie up, so we're not quite done yet!


	19. Iris

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now for a perspective from some more hidden characters...

As King of Pixie Hollow, Keishin has to know everything that goes on around him. Sometimes, this means boring things like acorn inventories, which he is currently getting a report on and trying his best not to fall asleep. Thankfully, it ends with Daichi saying, “In short, we have more than enough acorns for all the squirrels until the next harvest, and we’ll give the extra to the cooking talents for the harvest festival feast.”

 

Keishin breathes a sigh of relief and writes that down on his reports sheet. Daichi bows and begins packing up his presentation materials. Looking at his schedule, he has a free hour next. He’ll probably use it go check on the tinkers, though he knows it’s just an excuse to hang out with Takinoue and Shimada. They usually know what’s going through the gossip mill. He doesn’t really pay attention to the rumors which usually have no basis, but with recent events, he’s keeping an ear out for new information. 

 

After all, it’s only been from murmurs of fairies around him that alerted him to Oikawa’s border crossing.

 

The first few times he heard it, he dismissed it as just talk. But then he kept hearing things, from glaciers to snowy owls to pure curiosity pulling a Garden fairy to the Winter Woods. Before he retired for the day, he paid a visit to the healing ward, just to see if any of the rumors held up. Kiyoko, the head nurse, had informed him of Oikawa’s trip into the Winter Woods. 

 

_ Nearly shattering a wing should be enough of a lesson. No need for me to say it again.  _

 

_ Maybe this could have been avoided if I had just paid more attention to what was happening around me. _

 

With that thought in mind he calls out, “Are you going to lunch now, Daichi?”

 

Daichi turns around just as he’s about to go out the door. “Yeah. I was going to meet Suga, but I should probably get to the dining hall first. I saw him chasing a weasel earlier today, so he’s probably going to eat everything in sight when he gets there.”

 

“Ah, I’ll ask the Animal talents if there were any loose animals stealing berries. Did you see where it happened?”

 

“I think they were headed for the Autumn Forest. I think the Animal Talents already know- Kuroo was with them. So were Hanamaki and Oikawa. I wonder how many berries that weasel ate to have all of them chasing after it like that.”

 

With a short laugh, Daichi bows and flies out. Keishin feels something uneasy in the pit of his stomach.

 

_ There’s no way. Oikawa wouldn’t go back. But those are all the fairies Kiyoko said were involved. If I fail to act now and someone gets hurt… _

 

Keishin sighs. Takinoue and Shimada will have to wait. 

 

* * *

 

On the way to the Autumn Forest, Keishin sees nothing out of the ordinary. Fast Flying talents are blowing leaves into neat piles, and Animal talents are teaching squirrels how to forage for acorns. He smiles at them as they go by, and they bow respectfully in return. 

 

When he finally reaches the clearing, there is a single fairy there, standing in the snow.His heart races in fear until he realizes that there's only one Winter fairy with that kind of kingly aura. The fairy is right at the edge of the snow, toeing the edge thoughtfully. Keishin stops halfway across the bridge.

 

“Lord Ittetsu.”

 

The fairy looks up upon hearing his name and flashed him a smile.

 

“King Keishin, it's been years! How have you been?”

 

“Stressed, recently. You’ve heard about the fairies crossing over the border recently, haven’t you?”

 

The Lord of Winter’s smile falters at that. “Yes, I heard. though the details weren't very clear. I know which fairies were involved, but I would rather they come to me first. It wouldn’t do any good to start lecturing them if they weren’t willing to listen.”

 

Keishin nods. “The Warm fairy that crossed nearly broke a wing.”

 

Ittetsu’s brows furrow at that, and Keishin knows exactly what he is thinking about.

 

_ Our ancestors… _

 

“Did you hear about the rose gold pixie dust though?”

 

Ittetsu’s back goes a little straighter at the mention of the legendary substance. “That’s only a myth though. I know I’ve scoured our library enough for information about it.”

 

“I didn’t see it, but our head nurse did. It’s the only reason Oikawa is flying now.”

 

Ittetsu looks down, contemplative, and mutters, “Then that explains why they tried again. They knew they would have a way to fix it if something went wrong again.”

 

At Keishin’s confused gaze, the Lord of Winter looks behind him and says, “I was flying near the edge of the woods, and I saw two of my Animal Talents alongside two fairies dressed in flower petals. I assume they were Warm fairies.”

 

King Keishin connects all the pieces, and his eyes go wide. “Oikawa again, and he dragged someone else there with him? Ittetsu! Why didn’t you stop them? What kind of leader are you to let tragedy happen twice?”

 

“I was going to, but this time it was different. The Warm fairies had frost on their wings, and they were flying completely normally. I was thinking about it on my way here, and it makes sense. I can’t believe I never thought about that before.”

 

“It doesn’t matter! I don’t want my fairies getting hurt. They need to come back  _ now _ . We are the descendents of Karasuno and Nekoma, born of the laughs of their humans’ descendents, or have you forgotten? Of any fairies in Pixie Hollow, it’s our responsibility to honor their legacy and their sacrifice.”

 

“Keishin, our ancestors wouldn’t want us to stay apart forever. They only did because they had no choice. Don’t you remember the ending to their story? They sent letters to each other every single day, with Karasuno using the winds blowing into the Winter Woods and Nekoma sending animals back and forth. They loved each other until the day they returned to the stars. If there was a way Warm and Winter fairies to be together safely, don’t you think they would want that for us?”

 

King Keishin is stunned silent by Lord Ittetsu’s tirade, but then laughs lightly. “You always had a way with words, didn’t you? Fine, you’ve convinced me. If they come back safely, with their wings fully intact, then we will pursue this option of frosting wings.”

 

Lord Ittetsu’s face lights up, and King Keishin turns around before he can see the smile slowly growing on his own face. “I will talk to you again tomorrow, Ittetsu. See that my fairies come back safely.”

 

He hears Lord Ittetsu give a firm, “I will,” and with that, he flies away. He is lost in thought as he makes his way over to Tinker’s Nook, knowing that he needs to talk this out with his friends. 

 

_ I never thought I’d see the day we’d defy history. Please Oikawa, come back safely. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is the [iris](http://www.flowermeaning.com/flower-pics/Iris-Meaning.jpg), meaning "faith and hope."
> 
> I'm nearly done with the final chapter! But it's getting kind of long, so I have a question: Would you rather I post half the chapter next, which is about the length of a normal chapter, and split it up or wait an extra week and get the entire thing at once? Leave a comment!


	20. Hazel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! As you can see by the updated chapter number, we're almost at the end! I decided to split up the chapter I originally had at a natural break point. We're quickly winding up!

“You know, you should really go talk to Kenma.”

 

Oikawa and Hanamaki are flying back through the Autumn Woods as the sun sets behind them. After a long day of flying around the Winter Woods, Iwaizumi and Matsukawa finally sent them back once the light started to fade. The frost melted off their wings easily as they said their goodbyes with promises to meet the next day.

 

“You did basically lie to him about the jackets and then never check back in with him. He at least deserves an explanation.”

 

“Aaaah, but Makki, I'm so hungry! It's been hours since we had those snowcones. Can't we do this tomorrow?”

 

“We'll pass by Tinker's Nook on our way to the dining hall, c’mon! If we get there fast enough, we should be able to see him.”

 

And with that, Hanamaki is speeding off and Oikawa has no choice but to sigh and follow. They get there as the Tinkers are finishing up their work for the day. Zipping around all the fairies, the two Garden Talents make their way through the work rooms. When they stop in front of Kenma's room, he's putting away some tools. Oikawa knocks on the door, and Kenma looks up at him, expression unchanged.

 

“Ah, Oikawa.  I was wondering when you would come see me.”

 

“Sorry about the delay Kenma! A lot of stuff has happened since I started testing the jacket. I actually need to tell you something about that, I didn't actually-”

 

“It's ok, I already know.” Seeing the surprised looks the Garden Talents give him, he smiles, “When you hadn’t come back after a while, I figured something had gone wrong. I asked Kuro about it and he told me everything.”

 

Oikawa sighs, “I'm sorry I lied to you about needing the jackets for the Mainland. Well, not exactly because I was planning to use them for that anyways, but that wasn't my main motivation. I'm also sorry your prototype for destroyed in the process.”

 

“It's OK, everything worked out, didn't it? I got some good feedback for these jackets for Garden Talents to actually use when you go to the Mainland. Also, because you never came back that night, I had the excuse of waiting for you, so I missed the Tinker's Ball entirely.”

 

Oikawa and Hanamaki laugh at that. Kenma grabs something before leaving the room. “I also made this today. I had some spare sunflower supplies.”

 

He holds out a yellow triangle made of a sunflower petal attached to a ring of twine. Oikawa looks confused, so Kenma motions for him to bend down. Getting on his tiptoes, he slips it on Oikawa’s wing where the tip fell off.

 

Oikawa gasps when he realizes what Kenma's device is. Though it hasn't made flying any more difficult, he still startled a little whenever he noticed it in any reflective surface.

 

“Kenma, it's wonderful! How can I thank you for all this?”

 

Kenma smiles a little as he walks past them.

 

“Help me get out of next year’s Tinker’s Ball, and we’ll call it even.”

 

* * *

 

The Garden fairies fly out of Tinker's Nook, Oikawa chattering about what he thinks is for dinner. Just as they reach the exit of the workshops, he feels Hanamaki’s hand on his arm. From the opposite direction, King Keishin is walking out, talking with a couple of his friends.

 

 _We've broken_ so _many of his rules in the past few days. There's no way he hasn't heard about it by now._

 

 _“_ Oikawa! Hanamaki!”

 

Their eyes widen as King Keishin calls out to them, and they immediately bow. He motions them over, neutral expression on his face.

 

“I'd like to speak with you. Come with me.”

 

Waving to Takinoue and Shimada, King Keishin flies off, Oikawa and Hanamaki flying nervously and silently behind him. Once they see where they’re going, their eyes widen. Yachi, who greets them from behind the reception desk, clearly wasn’t expecting this visit either, judging by her worsened shaking and stuttering.

 

“Yachi, could you ask Kiyoko to meet us in one of the examination rooms?”

 

“Y-yes! Room 5 is, should be, maybe, I-I’ll go get, go, go get, her, aaaaaaaah…”

 

He nods and the fairies walk to room 5. Nervousness grows in the pit of Oikawa’s stomach as they sit down on the examination table and Kiyoko flies in.

 

“Kiyoko, would you please make sure Hanamaki and Oikawa’s wings are not damaged in any way?”

 

Her eyebrows furrow, clearly questioning why but not wanting to ask the King. She works, bringing her magnifying glass, and the silence in the room is suffocating. Eventually she puts down her equipment.

 

“Both your wings are slightly damp, but nothing is wrong with them or should be able to hinder your flight.”

 

They all see tension drain out of King Keishin and he breathes out, “Thank you so much Kiyoko. Could you give us some privacy please?”

 

Kiyoko nods, questions still in her eyes, but she bows and draws the curtain behind her as she flies out. King Keishin practically collapses into the chair across from them. He levels them with a stare, and the two Garden talents squirm.

 

“I’ve heard what you two did. Specifically you Oikawa. You broke rules knowing they were there. Do you know why we have those rules?”

 

“...Yes. They’re there to protect us from what happened to Karasuno and Nekoma.”

 

“So you knew exactly the reasoning behind these rules, but you went anyways. I thought your broken wings were enough punishment, so I didn’t say anything. But you went again, completely aware of the dangers, pulling another fairy in with you!”

 

“I’m sorry King Keishin. But there’s a Winter fairy that I love, that loves me back so much that he made rose gold pixie dust to save my wings. I know what I did was dangerous, even more so bringing Makki-”

 

“Don’t pretend like you’re the only one involved here,” Makki interrupts. “Oikawa may have gone first, but I volunteered to go the second time. We’ve figured out how to bring Warm fairies safely into the Winter Woods! They frost our wings, and they’re safe from the cold, just like our flowers in the mainland during Winter. Look, we were there all day, and our wings are fine.”

 

“King Keishin, we know how to be together safely. Please, let us go to Winter. We’ll be safe, and we won’t bring anyone else into this, we promise.”

 

King Keishin’s stoic expression breaks into a small smile. “You’re lucky Lord Ittetsu is so eager to join our kingdoms.” At their confused expressions, he explains, “I met him today. He saw you cross over and explained what you did with the frost. I agreed that if you came back safely, we would discuss allowing fairies to cross from Warm Seasons to the Winter Woods.”

 

Oikawa’s eyes go wide and he feels Hanamaki grab his arm.

 

“Oikawa, all Lord Ittetsu and I want is for our fairies to be safe and happy. If I forbade you from seeing your Winter friends, you may be safe, but you wouldn’t be happy. Next time, please talk to us instead of recklessly putting yourselves in danger.”

 

With that, he stands up to leave. Oikawa can feel himself shaking, both from excitement and Hanamaki’s hands on his shoulders, big grins plastered on their faces.

 

“And Oikawa?” He says, looking over his shoulder. “Thank you. You’ve joined our kingdoms in ways we couldn’t have dreamed of before. Karasuno and Nekoma would be proud.”

 

King Keishin flies off before Oikawa can thank him too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's flower is the [hazel](http://www.buzzle.com/images/flowers/varieties/hazel-flower.jpg), which means "reconciliation."
> 
> Please leave a comment! It really means a lot to me to hear what you think about the chapter!


	21. Orange Blossom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So uh remember when I said there wouldn't be any more long waits haha
> 
> Sorry for the delay! Summer classes really got to me, but here it is! The final chapter!
> 
> I also wanted to say thank you to darienart for this lovely [fanart](http://prettysetterss.tumblr.com/post/161453273907/darienart-iwaizumi-is-silent-for-a-few-seconds)! Please go check it out!

“Next!”

 

Kiyoko, Yachi and other Healing Talents help move fairies from Fall to Winter, telling them when to cross so the nearest Frost talent can cover their wings. It’s been a few months since King Keishin agreed to allow Warm fairies to visit the Winter Woods. In that time, rules and boundaries have been renegotiated, and Oikawa has been involved in some of these discussions. 

  
  


Suga looks around doubtfully, but Oikawa waves to him. Taking a deep breath, he steps over the border, shivering despite the warm clothing he’s wearing. Watari moves behind him, hands moving over his wings as frost sprawls over them. Suga’s back goes straight, and Oikawa laughs at the expression on his face. 

 

“Welcome to the Winter Woods, Suga. Glad you finally made it over here,” Oikawa says as Suga tests out how well he can fly. Before Suga can comment on how flying feels with a thin film of ice over his wings, there’s a commotion from the bridge. 

 

“Dumbass Hinata, I’m not going first!”

 

“What, are you scared?”

 

“No!”

 

“Then you go first!”

 

“If you’re not scared, then you go first!”

 

There’s two fairies at the border, seeming to simultaneously push each other towards and away from the border. Yachi has begun to shake and stutter again, looking to Kiyoko helplessly. All Kiyoko does is pull Yachi behind her protectively. 

 

Oikawa flies up to them, careful to keep his wings in Winter, yelling, “Hey, what’s wrong?”

 

The fairies, most likely Fast Flying talents by the shapes of their wings, stop suddenly, hands pushing at each others faces. 

 

_ The one with the black hair looks familiar… Wait. _

 

“You’re the fairy who stole my hair clip!” Oikawa squawks indignantly. 

 

“Are Kageyama and Hinata bothering you, Oikawa? Apologize, both of you!”

 

Semi, one of the Fast Flying leaders, has stepped up behind the two fairies, who apologize quietly. 

 

“I’m sorry about these two, they’re almost half a year old, and they’re still acting like they just arrived yesterday.”

 

He turns back to Kageyama, the smile directed at Oikawa quickly turning into a scowl as he berates him, “What’s this about you taking something of Oikawa’s?”

 

“I wanted to try out some new wind direction things I’d heard about from the older fairies, about directing the wind to bring things to you. When I tried it out, the wind brought me back the hair clip. I didn’t know it was his, and then he started chasing me and it was really scary.”

 

“Kageyama! You know we’ve told you not to try new techniques without one of helping you.”

 

Even though he scolds Kageyama, Semi looks both impressed and jealous. The tiny orange fairy, Hinata most likely, mirrors his expression.

 

“Why are you good at everything Kageyama? You watch your back, I'll catch up to you!”

 

Kageyama blinks. “But you fly faster than anyone in Pixie Hollow. Except me of course.”

 

The younger fairies devolve into bickering and Oikawa decides that he's had enough of this. Although, he feels like he has something to say before he leaves.

 

“Kageyama.” He has the distinct feeling that he’s too engrossed in his fight with Hinata, which has resorted back to light shoves. “You may have caused me a lot of trouble, but this wouldn’t have happened if you never took my hair clip. Thank you.”

 

With that, he flies back into Winter. Kageyama has stopped fighting with Hinata and is staring at Oikawa, puzzled. Semi sighs, “It’ll be a miracle if you manage to ever understand emotion in the moment.”

 

* * *

 

Warm fairies are exploring the new landscape and Winter fairies are all around, excited to show off the wonders of their home. However, there’s one fairy missing from all the festivities, and Oikawa knows exactly where he is. He flies to a quiet grove of trees, where a fairy sits under his home, a weasel resting her head on his lap. 

 

Oikawa sits next to Iwaizumi, lacing their fingers together and giving him a quick peck on the cheek. They pet Spruce’s head, hands occasionally brushing as she purrs in approval. 

 

“What are you doing out here all alone?”

 

“I’m not alone. I have Spruce with me.”

 

Iwaizumi lets out a laugh as he gets a shove from Oikawa. 

 

“I just wanted some time to think before we got swarmed by everyone for the rest of the day. I was also hoping you would come find me so we could have some alone time.”

 

“Mmm, and what did you want to do with this alone time?”

 

Iwaizumi’s cheeks go red, and he fidgets a bit. Oikawa stares curiously at him, which makes him fidget more. A mischievous smile crosses his face as he pokes Iwaizumi’s arm. “Iwa-chan, are you hiding something from me? Spruce, is he hiding something from me?”

 

Spruce smiles up at him and nudges at Iwaizumi’s arm. Oikawa’s grin grows and he grabs at where Spruce is while Iwaizumi bats him away. 

 

“OK, I have something for you, just- sit still alright?”

 

“Alright, Iwa-chan! I will gladly accept your offering!”

 

Iwaizumi grumbles a bit before he pulls his arm out from his side. Oikawa’s joking, pompous air immediately falls as he sees what’s in Iwaizumi’s hands. It’s a beautiful hair clip made of red flower petals that he’s only ever seen in books. It’s lined in frost, which makes it sparkle in the light. 

 

“When we went to the mainland last month, I brought it back with me. Well, I brought a couple petals back, the entire flower was too big to carry around. Watari frosted it and Hanamaki helped keep it alive after-”

 

“It’s beautiful I love it so much it’s so pretty I’ve never gotten to see a poinsettia in real life, Hajime I love you so much.”

 

Oikawa stops his rambles when Iwaizumi pins the clip to his hair. He takes a moment to gently touch it while Iwaizumi continues to run his fingers through his hair. Though he could stay like this forever, he gently takes Iwaizumi’s hand in his as he turns to his bag. 

 

“I have something for you too. You remember how I noticed your room was getting cluttered with frosted flowers and took them and you were convinced that meant I was breaking up with you?”

 

Iwaizumi groans, “Please can we forget that even happened?”

 

“It’s OK, Iwa-chan! Even if your head is completely empty, I can think for the both of us!”

 

“Dumbass Oikawa, you’re the air head!”

 

Oikawa is laughing too hard to speak and hides his face in Iwaizumi’s shoulder to try and calm himself. “OK, OK, I actually need to give you something.”

 

He rummages through his messenger bag, stops, looks back at Iwaizumi, and says, “You need to close your eyes.”

 

Iwaizumi gives him a questioning look, but then follows his directions. After a few seconds, Oikawa glances down at Spruce, who nods back at him and sits up to cover Iwaizumi’s eyes with her paws. 

 

“Hey! I wasn’t peeking!”

 

“Spruce sees all, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa laughs as he pulls out what he’s looking for. He takes his boyfriend’s hand in his and lays it on the object before he says, “OK, you can look now.”

 

Iwaizumi looks down to see a book, unlike one he’s ever seen before. It’s beautifully bound, with some sturdy brown covers and gold accents. On the front is a simple drawing of a flower intertwined with an owl feather. The flower’s tips are covered in frost, while the edges of the white feather are lined with gold, as if sunshine was pouring onto it. Iwaizumi struggles to keep his hands from shaking as he runs his fingers over the book. He looks to Oikawa, who has a soft smile on his face.

 

“I had my friend Ennoshita help me with this. He was the Book Keeping talent that helped me find out about the Winter Woods before I asked Kenma to make that jacket.”

 

When Iwaizumi continues to look at the cover, Oikawa giggles, “Well go on, open it! What’s inside is much better.”

 

When Iwaizumi does, he finds that he agrees. Inside is a pressed flower, blue and purple, the first one that he ever received from Oikawa. In flowing script above it, he finally puts a name to the flower. 

 

_ Hydrangea, for gratitude. _

 

“I figured I’d have the flowers pressed into the book so they would stay there without having to be frosted.”

 

When he looks to the next page, pink flowers are pressed.

 

_ Pink carnations mean I will never forget you. _

 

He flips through the pages, the words blurring through the tears. 

 

_ Pink larkspur. Beautiful soul. Lavender roses. Enchantment. Camellias. Longing for you. Red and white roses. Unity.  _

 

“Tooru. This is beautiful.”

 

His voice cracks and he swipes at the tears on his cheeks. Seeing this seems to make Oikawa’s eyes fill too and they start laughing. Their foreheads are pressed together, and soon, their lips are too. They taste of salt and honey and joy, and if they notice the rose gold glow on both their wings, they choose to pay attention to each other instead. 

 

Oikawa breaks the kiss to reach into his bag once more, and he pulls out a multicolored bunch of flowers. The heliotrope, primrose, and orange blossom bouquet already has frost clinging to the petals. 

 

“I still want to give them to you fresh, though.”

 

Iwaizumi takes the flowers in his still trembling hands. “Are you going to tell me what they mean now, or do I have to wait for my room to be overtaken by them first?”

 

Oikawa bursts into laughter, and Iwaizumi soon follows. They drift towards each other again, flowers cradled carefully between them as their noses touch. 

 

“Hey lovebirds! Heads up!”

 

They’re broken out of their reverie by twin snowballs to their faces. 

 

Oikawa recovers first to see Hanamaki and Matsukawa flying above them, grins plastered to their faces, each with snowballs doused in pixie dust floating in front of them. 

 

“Fairies that miss the snowball fight automatically lose,” Matsukawa says, tossing a snowball up and down in his hand.

 

“Also, it's a pairs snowball fight. You have to hold hands, but that shouldn't be too hard for you two.”

 

“Makki, are you sure that isn't just because you want to keep holding Mattsun’s hand?” Oikawa teases, looking pointedly to where the two fairies are joined. 

 

After a few seconds of spluttering, Hanamaki, with redness spreading over his cheeks, decides to respond by launching another snowy attack. Oikawa ducks to the side and shouts a resounding “Ha!”

 

Upon hearing a low grumble from behind him, Oikawa turns to see Iwaizumi with a face full of snow. Cackles sound from Matsukawa and Hanamaki and they fly away, calling, “Don't be late!”

 

With that, the clearing becomes quiet again. Iwaizumi wipes snow from his face, shooting Oikawa an unimpressed look. “Just so you know, you're going to be my shield during this snowball fight.”

 

Iwaizumi flies up to the entrance of his home to put the book and flowers away.  Oikawa follows behind him, saying, “Dont worry! I, Oikawa Tooru, will protect my delicate little Iwa-chan, the tiniest fairy to ever exist.”

 

He gets a punch in the arm for that, but laughs anyways. On the ground, Spruce has started making some snowballs for them, and Iwaizumi rewards her with a pat on the head and cranberries from his pouch. 

 

After sprinkling some pixie dust on their ammunition, their fingers twine together. Iwaizumi gives Oikawa a peck on the lips and says, “Let's go get Makki and Mattsun.”

 

They fly off together, Spruce running along on the ground. When they reach the clearing, they see fairies flying everywhere. Watari is ice skating, with Suga and Akaashi shakily following behind him. He laughs when Akaashi slips, bringing Suga down with him. Apparently Daichi has gotten the hang of skating very quickly and glides over to help them as Suga gapes at him. Kindaichi is showing off the snowy owls to Kuroo and Bokuto. Their excitement bleeds over to the owls, who become rowdy. Mizoguchi has to come over and help the flustered Kindaichi. Kenma is sitting with Kunimi away from the activity and they quietly show each other their talents. King Keishin and Lord Ittetsu fly to each activity together, smiling and joining in. They look over at Oikawa and Iwaizumi and their smiles brighten. Oikawa knows what they're trying to say. 

 

_ Look at what your love has created.  _

 

Oikawa’s heart feels like it's been covered in rose gold pixie dust. 

 

...And then he's jerked to the side and pelted with snowballs. 

 

Laughter rings out around him and he hears a smug “I did say you would be my shield” from behind him. 

 

“Iwa-chan! You would let them attack me like this? This is the worst betrayal!”

 

“Less complaining, more throwing,” Iwaizumi says, launching a couple snowballs at Mattsun and Makki, who fly ahead of them to set up a fort behind a tree.

 

“Ah, but first, I need a good luck kiss!”

 

“Yeah, good luck with all the hits you'll be taking.”

 

“Iwa-chan, you're so mean to me!”

 

His complaints are silenced by a set of lips on his. 

 

“Alright, there's your good luck kiss. I want a victory kiss once this is done,” Iwaizumi says with a fond smile. 

 

“With how much we're going to win, I'll make sure to give you at least ten victory kisses!” Oikawa cheers, pulling Iwaizumi with him. 

 

The Winter Woods are filled with joy that day, but out of all the festivities, the rose gold love between two fairies shines the brightest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The final flowers are the heliotrope, meaning "Devotion", primrose, meaning "I can't live without you," and orange blossom, meaning "Eternal Love."
> 
> And with that, this story is complete. It's been an adventure writing this and I couldn't have done it without each and every one of you. Every kudos and comment means so much to me and has motivated me to tell this story. I would really appreciate hearing your final thoughts in the comments! Thank you all for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> So I love haikyuu more than anything and I love the Disney Fairies universe more than anything, so when you put them together, you get this. Please tell me if any of the fairy terminology needs to be clarified! Inspired by [Howleu's](http://www.howleu.tumblr.com/tagged/fairy-au) art! 
> 
> Comments and kudos give me life! Come talk to me about volleyball and fairies at [prettysetterss](http://www.prettysetterss.tumblr.com)!


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